Taiwan earthquake: Aftershocks trigger panic as rescuers scour tilting building; see photos

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Taiwanese rescuers today braved aftershocks coursing through a dangerously leaning apartment block that was partially toppled by a deadly earthquake as their search for survivors uncovered two more bodies. At least nine people were killed and dozens remained missing after a 6.4-magnitude quake hit the popular eastern tourist city of Hualien late Tuesday, according to a revised toll from the national fire agency. The powerful tremor left a handful of buildings badly damaged — some of them leaning at precarious angles — as well as roads torn up and hundreds forced to shelter in local schools and a stadium. (Image: Reuters)

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The lower floors of the 12-storey tower — which also housed a hotel — pancaked, leaving the structure leaning at a fifty-degree angle and sparking fears of an imminent collapse. (Image: Reuters)

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Despite those risks rescuers kept going into the building in a desperate search for survivors, recovering two bodies –a Chinese mainland tourist and a hotel worker — on Thursday. (Image: Reuters)

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Strong aftershocks continued to strike sending rescue teams scurrying from the building, only for them to return a little while later and resume their grim task. (Image: Reuters)

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An emergency responder surnamed Lin said it took 14 hours to free the body of the hotel worker, who was partially trapped between the hotel's ceiling and floor. (Image: Reuters)

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Hualien is one of Taiwan's most popular tourist hubs as it lies on the picturesque east coast rail line and near the popular Taroko Gorge. (Image: Reuters)

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But the mountains that rise up behind the city — and bestow Taiwan's east coast with such majestic beauty — are a testament to the deadly tectonic faultlines that run through the island. (Image: Reuters)

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More than 250 people were injured in the tremor, the strongest to hit Hualien in decades. (Image: Reuters)

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A Red Cross worker at the scene estimated that the building had tilted another five percent overnight, adding he had little hope of finding survivors on its lowest floors. (Image: Reuters)