Four persons were killed and over 50 injured after a 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit Taiwan's east coast, Taiwan's fire department said on Wednesday.
The national fire agency said four people died in Hualien County.
Hualien was the epicenter of the quake that struck around 8 am Wednesday.
A tsunami warning was issued for Miyakojima and Okinawa islands in Japan. However, the alert was downgraded from a warning to an advisory later, CNN reported citing Japan's Meteorological Agency.
The Philippines also issued a tsunami warning with people in the coastal areas across the provinces of Batanes Group of Islands, Cagayan, Ilocos Norte and Isabela have been "strongly advised to immediately evacuate to higher grounds or move further inland," according to the advisory.
At least 26 buildings have collapsed, more than half in Hualien, with about 20 people trapped and rescue work on-going, the fire department said.
In the capital, Taipei, tiles fell from older buildings and within some newer office complexes.
The quake had a depth of 15.5 km, according to Taiwan's Central Weather Administration.
In the aftermath of a powerful earthquake that rocked Taiwan's eastern shores, all flights to Japan's Naha Airport on Okinawa island have been diverted, CNN reported citing the airport's spokesperson.
As a precautionary measure to evade loss of life in anticipation of the tsunami's impact, all staff and personnel have evacuated to the third floor of the airport building, the airport spokesperson, Hideaki Tsurudo told CNN, adding that no waves have reached the airport in the timeframe of the warning.
Additionally, all flights from Japan's Okinawa and Kagoshima regions have been suspended following tsunami warnings in the area, according to Japan Airlines.
The epicentre of the temblor was located in the Pacific Ocean, 25.0 kilometres south-southeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 15.5 km, according to the administration's Seismology Center, Central News Agency reported.
An intensity level of 5+ was reported in Yilan County in the northeast and in Miaoli County in the north, while 5- was reported in Taipei City, New Taipei City, Taoyuan City and Hsinchu County in the north, Taichung City, Changhua County and Nantou County in central Taiwan, the Central Weather Agency said
The alert was prompted by an earthquake with an estimated magnitude of 7.5, occurring shortly before 9 am The Japan Meteorological Agency identified the earthquake's epicenter near Taiwan, according to NHK.