Taiwan earthquake death toll rises to 12

Two more bodies were found in the ruins of a building in Taiwan's Hualien County Friday afternoon, taking the death toll in the earthquake to 12.

Large machines clear the site of the collapsed Marshal Hotel in Hualien County, southeast China's Taiwan, Feb. 9, 2018. Large machinery started to clear the site of the collapsed Marshal Hotel and two tilted buildings on Friday morning. Rescuers Friday were continuing their search for seven people trapped in a collapsed building about 60 hours after a powerful earthquake struck Hualien. [Photo: Xinhua]

The bodies were identified as a Canadian couple, according to Taiwan's emergency operation center.

After the earthquake late Tuesday night, a family of five from the Chinese mainland were still trapped in the rubble as of 4 p.m. Friday.

Rescuers are continuing their search, but face great difficulties with very limited space to enter the site, according to Fu Kun-Chi, head of Hualien County.

"We will do our best to find the missing people within the 72-hour golden rescue period," said Fu.

The 12 victims include four from Chinese mainland, five from Taiwan, one from the Philippines and two from Canada. A total of 278 people were injured.

All the mainland tour groups in Taiwan are currently safe, according to the Taipei office of the Association for Tourism Exchange across the Taiwan Straits Friday.

The office has been in touch with the families of the four mainland victims and five missing mainland tourists and is helping them to visit Taiwan.

The Ministry of Public Security has offered expedited travel certificates for family members of the casualties, said the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council.

In the meantime, the National Tourism Administration plans to send a team to help deal with the aftermath.

According to the China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC), the magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck waters near Hualien at 11:50 p.m. Tuesday.

It was the most severe earthquake to hit Hualien in five decades.