
At least 11 people have died including a ten-day-old baby after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake hit Taiwan in the early hours of this morning, causing a 17-storey apartment building to collapse.

Emergency crews are working to free hundreds more people who are feared trapped after the quake struck the southern city of Tainan at around 4am at the start of the Chinese New Year holidays, according to Taiwan's state news agency.

A ten-day-old girl was reported to have died in the disaster alongside a 50-year-old man who was found in the same apartment. Another man, 40, was reportedly killed, as was a 55-year-old woman, according to an emergency response center in Tainan.

Fire crews told Channel News Asia that another woman was killed by a falling water tank at a different location, but did not give any more details.

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Alive: Fire crews are pictured pulling a stunned infant from the wreckage of a 17-storey apartment building in the city of Tainan, Taiwan, after an earthquake struck this morning killing three and leaving hundreds more trapped

While this infant was lucky enough to escape with its life, another ten-day-old baby girl was reported to have been killed along with a 50-year-old man found inside the same apartment

Another youngster wrapped in a pink blanket is carried from the ruins of the 17-storey building which is believed to have been home to 256 people living in 92 apartments

A young girl stares into the camera after being pulled alive from the remains of a 17-storey apartment block that collapsed in Tainan City

Some 11 people are now reported to have died in the disaster - including four in the 17-storey apartment block, while another was killed by a falling water tower at another location (pictured, rescue workers carry the body of a victim out of an apartment)

As well as the baby girl and 50-year-old man, another man aged 40 was found dead inside the apartment block, with the body of a 55-year-old woman later discovered among the rubble

Emergency workers in Tainan City remove the body of another victim from the apartment block that collapsed this morning

A man breaks down in tears after the body of his relative is carried from the rubble after an earthquake in Taiwan killed 11 today

Among those injured in the disaster were multiple young children who had been looking forward to the start of the Chinese New Year holidays when the disaster unfolded this morning

The ten-day-old girl and 50-year-old man were reported dead at the scene, while another 55-year-old woman died before reaching hospital (pictured, fire crews take another infant from the rubble)

More than 200 people have so far been freed from collapsed buildings, though hundreds more could still be trapped after the strong earthquake hit at around 4am today

Multiple infants were pictured being pulled from the apartment today, including this child being passed out of a window by fire crews

An injured man is pictured being carried on a stretcher out of the collapsed apartment block in Tainan City this morning where up to 30 people remain unaccounted for

Many of the injured were pictured being taken out on stretchers, while dozens more appeared bloodied and dazed from the wreckage

An elderly man with a badly bruised eye winces in pain as rescue workers attempt to lower him out of the rubble of a 17-storey apartment building that collapsed in Tainan this morning

Rescuers scramble through the ruins of the collapsed 17-storey building in the Yongkang District following the earthquake

This aerial shot shows two collapsed buildings lying across the road, with emergency services' vehicles surrounding them

A crane helps lift heavy pieces of concrete during the massive rescue effort currently underway in Taiwan

The 17-storey building had several hundred residents but 'pancaked' when the 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck, authorities said

A woman who survived the earthquake is hoisted from the rubble in a cage attached to a crane as fire crews look on earlier today

At least 230 people have been pulled from the rubble this morning, but up to 30 more people are feared to be trapped

Firemen help a young woman to escape the wreckage of her apartment building after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake hit Taiwan this morning, causing it to collapse

Rescuers climb up the mangled ruins of the apartment block to reach people trapped on the higher floors

Rescue workers confirmed that 378 people were injured across the city in the quake, with 230 being pulled from the rubble. The other injuries are believed to have been caused by falling debris.

At least 1,200 firemen and soldiers have been marshaled in order to deal with the crisis, and are now focusing their rescue efforts on the 17-storey building, where it is thought up to 30 people could still be trapped.

Buildings in nine other locations in the city of 2 million people had collapsed and five were left tilting at alarming angles, a government emergency centre said.

The initial quake, which struck just before 4am, was very shallow, at depth of 6.2 miles (10 km), which would have amplified its effects, the United States Geographical Survey said.

TAIWAN EARTHQUAKE BY NUMBERS Dead: 11, including a ten-day-old girl Injured: 378 taken to hospital Saved: 230 pulled from rubble Rescuers: 1,200 firemen and soldiers Trapped: Up to 30 inside apartment block Magnitude: 6.4, striking at 3.57am Advertisement

It was followed least five aftershocks of 3.8-magnitude or more, according to Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau. Any earthquake which measures above 6 on the Richter scale is considered strong, with the most severe recorded measuring at 8.9.

Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou, speaking to reporters in the capital before leaving for the Tainan, said authorities were not clear on the extent of the disaster.

'The disaster situation is not very clear yet. We will do our utmost to rescue and secure (survivors),' Ma said.

China's Taiwan Affairs Office, which in is charge of Beijing's relations with the self-ruled island, said China was willing to provide help if needed, Chinese state news agency Xinhua said. Beijing regards Taiwan as a wayward province.

The quake initially cut power to 168,000 households in Tainan. Later, utility Taipower said power had been restored to all but about 900 households.

Taiwan's Formosa TV showed images of police, firefighters and some troops in camouflage uniforms at the site of the 17-storey building, where the cries of some residents trapped inside could be heard.

The firefighters were hosing down part of the building to prevent a fire, while others used ladders and a crane to enter the upper floors.

A man covered with dust is helped from the remains of a Taiwan apartment block that collapsed after an hit earthquake this morning

Residents help an injured man escape the rubble of this morning's earthquake in Taiwan. More than 350 people were hurt in the disaster

Rescue workers carry a woman on a strecher from a collapsed building after an earthquake in Tainan, Taiwan, today

A badly injured woman is taken to hospital on a stretcher by rescue workers in Tainan City earlier today

Rescuers help a survivor out of a collapsed building following a 6.4 magnitude earthquake that struck the area in Tainan City, Taiwan

A man still dressed in his pyjamas is rescued from a collapsed building after an earthquake in Tainan, Taiwan, this morning

A woman is helped out of a collapsed apartment block in the city of Tainan, Taiwan, this morning after a strong earthquake hit

An exhausted fireman takes a breather on the pavement outside an apartment block where it is thought up to 30 people could be trapped

Up to 1,200 fire crew and soldiers have been deployed in Tainan in order to help deal with the disaster which saw 378 wounded

The devastating quake took place just as the country was about to start its Chinese New Year holiday

One Tainan resident told MailOnline that the hospitals in the city are full, while water and electricity has largely been cut off

The earthquake was followed least five aftershocks of 3.8-magnitude or more, according to Taiwan's Central Weather Burea

Rescue crews are seen in front of the collapsed apartment building which folded in on itself after hitting the ground

A rescue worker standing in a crane cage is lowered into the collapsed apartment building in Tainan City in order to look for survivors

Rescue crews scramble over the side of a collapsed building in Tainan City, southern Taiwan, after it was hit by an earthquake

While several apartment buildings in Tainan were reportedly damaged, rescue efforts are now solely focused on the 17-storey building

A car left danging among the remains of a building is seen next to construction workers as they search for survivors in Tainan City

Hundreds of firemen are at the scene of the earthquake working to pull the injured and missing from the rubble today

Rescue personnel work at a damaged building after an earthquake struck at 4am on Saturday south of Tainan, southern Taiwan

The building appeared to have collapsed onto the first story where a child's clothes were visible fluttering on a laundry line.

'There are 60 households in that building,' said Tainan City Government Fire Bureau information officer Lee Po Min, estimating that there might be about 240 people living there.

A 71-year-old neighbour, who gave his name as Chang, revealed he was watching television when the quake struck.

'I was watching TV and after a sudden burst of shaking, I heard a boom,' he said. 'I opened my metal door and saw the building opposite fall down.'

A plumber, he said he fetched some tools and a ladder and prised some window bars open to rescue a woman crying for help.

'She asked me to go back and rescue her husband, child, but I was afraid of a gas explosion so I didn't go in. At the time there were more people calling for help, but my ladder wasn't long enough so there was no way to save them.'

As well as emergency workers, military personnel are also on site helping to rescue hundreds of people who are believed to be trapped

Another apartment building that has collapsed on the first floor, completely crushing the cars parked alongside it

Emergency workers peer into apartments after a 17-storey building collapsed in the city of Tainan this morning

Firemen have been using ladders and cherry-pickers in order to get into the ruined building, before carrying people out

Twisted metal cables and shattered concrete filled the street around this toppled apartment building in Tainan City, Taiwan, this morning

Cars are pictured buried underneath rubble from one apartment building that collapsed in Tainan city earlier today after an earthquake

Rescue personnel work on damaged buildings after an earthquake in Tainan, southern Taiwan

Rescuers work at the quake site in Kaohsiung, which was closer to the epicentre of the earthquake

One weeping resident told how she tried to smash her way out of her home.

'I used a hammer to break the door of my home which was twisted and locked, and managed to climb out,' she told local channel SET TV, weeping as she spoke.

Elsewhere in the city of two million people, several buildings tilted at alarming angles.

Dozens have been rescued or safely evacuated from a market and a seven-floor building that was badly damaged, the Central News Agency reported.

A bank building also careened, but no injuries were reported, it said.

A Tainan resident told MailOnline: 'The water supply has been cut off and the hospitals are full. It's pretty horrendous. Some people are trapped in collapsed buildings.'

Rescue personnel work at a damaged building - possibly an office block - in the hours after quake

The city has set up an emergency response centre to deal with the disaster

Some 221 people were rescued within four hours of the earthquake, 115 needing hospitalisation, and two in critical condition

Rescuers are seen entering an office building that collapsed early on Saturday morning

While several apartment blocks were damaged in the quake, rescue efforts are now solely focused on the 17-storey block in Tainan

A major rescue effort was underway following the 6.9 magnitude quake, which struck at 4am Taiwan time

'This has also taken place just before Chinese New Year, which starts on Sunday.'

Liu Shih-chung, an official with the Tainan City Government, said the city had set up an emergency response centre as it tried to cope with the disaster.

'I hugged the wall and put my face to the wall,' Pao-feng Wu, a Tainan resident, said after the quake hit.

ARE YOU IN TAINAN? Please get in touch by emailing chris.pleasance@mailonline.co.uk. Advertisement

The centre was located some 22 miles (36 kilometres) south-east of Yujing, and was felt as a lengthy, rolling shake in the capital, Taipei, on the other side of the island.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami was not expected.

Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is regularly hit by earthquakes.

A strong 6.3-magnitude quake which hit central Taiwan in June 2013 killed four people and caused widespread landslides.

A 7.6-magnitude quake struck the island in September 1999 and killed around 2,400 people.

'Multiple' buildings - including at least one residential block - are said to have fallen following the quake

So far about 30 people have been saved from the rubble and no fatalities have been reported