No tsunami risk to B.C. after Taiwan earthquake, officials say

Officials say there is no tsunami risk to coastal B.C. after a massive earthquake near Taiwan Tuesday afternoon.

The magnitude 7.2 quake hit at 4:58 p.m. Pacific Time (7:58 a.m. local time) about 18 kilometres off the east coast city Hualien, according to Taiwan’s earthquake monitoring agency.

The shockwaves collapsed buildings and triggered a tsunami that hit southern Japanese islands.

Just before 6 p.m., Emergency Info BC wrote on social media that “this event has been assessed” and “there is no tsunami threat to B.C.”

An attached bulletin from the U.S. National Tsunami Warning Center says there’s no danger anywhere on the U.S. West Coast, B.C. or Alaska.

“Some of the areas listed above may experience non-damaging sea level changes,” it reads.