Following the traumatic earthquake that hit Taiwan two days ago and left at least 37 people dead, rescuers have pulled out two survivors -- an 8-year-old girl and her aunt -- from the rubble of the high-rise apartment buildings that toppled.

The girl identified as Lin Su-Chin was immediately taken to the hospital, while her 28-year-old aunt was rescued shortly after, according to a Taiwanese television station. The two were conscious when found trapped in the fifth-floor section of the building more than 60 hours after it collapsed. 

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So far, the death toll from the earthquake has increased to 38 with over 100 people unaccounted for. A 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck Taiwan early morning, around 4:00 AM (local time), this past Saturday. Most victims were found in the debris of the Wei-guan Golden Dragon Building. 

Currently, search and rescue operation is still being carried out. Relatives of several of the missing people are reportedly at the site of the rescue operation, others are also flooding information centers hoping for good news. Some were reportedly seen walking around with green cards around their neck with their missing relative's name and location in the building.

Efforts are being concentrated on a 17-storey building in Tainan, the worst-hit city, where over 100 people have been listed as missing. Rescuers believe they are buried deep under the debris. Of the 37 victims, 35 are from Tainan, while the other two are from other cities.

Rescuers are utilizing all the necessary equipments including cranes, ladders, drills, life detection tools and sniffer dogs to hasten the operation, but they also have to clean up the ruins to avoid further catastrophes. Once all the residents from the upper parts have been ensured free, workers will begin using diggers and extractors to get rid of giant concrete slabs.

Although earthquakes frequently strikes in Taiwan, they are usually minor and cause little or no damage. Before last Saturday's 6.4 magnitude earthquake, Taiwan was hit by a 7.6 quake in 1999 killing over 2,300 people. 

TagsTaiwan Earthquake, earthquake, Disaster, search and rescue operation