TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A magnitude 5.4 earthquake struck northeastern Taiwan at 12:37 p.m. Tuesday, according to the Central Weather Administration.

The quake’s epicenter was located 46.9 kilometers southeast of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 23.2 kilometers, the agency said.

Taiwan uses a seven-tier intensity scale to measure the strength of shaking at specific locations. The earthquake recorded a maximum intensity level of 4 in Yilan County and Hualien County.

An intensity level of 2 was recorded in New Taipei, Taipei, Taoyuan, Nantou, Taichung, Hsinchu County, Miaoli County, Changhua County, Yunlin County, and Chiayi County. Intensity level 1 shaking was recorded in Keelung, Taitung County, Hsinchu, Chiayi, Tainan, and Kaohsiung.

Wu Chien-fu (吳健富), director of the CWA Seismological Center, said the quake was mainly caused by the subduction of the Philippine Sea Plate beneath the Eurasian Plate. He said the earthquake was an independent event associated with the Heping Basin, located in waters between Yilan and Hualien, per UDN.

Wu said basins form when tectonic plates subduct and the Earth’s surface sinks. Earthquakes in such basins are typically shallow, often occurring at depths of around 10 kilometers or less, he said.