Rescuers Detect Signs Of Life In HK Couple's Room

Rescuers in Taiwan said on Friday morning that they had detected signs of life from a room where a Hong Kong couple, who hold Canadian passports, were staying, inside an apartment block which was partially toppled by an earthquake.

According to Taiwanese media reports, sources at the scene said faint sounds were picked up 50 hours after a 6.4-magnitude quake hit the popular eastern tourist city of Hualien late on Tuesday.

But the disaster response centre also said the room was giving out the smell of dead bodies.

A rescue team from Japan has joined in the rescue operation at the Yun Tsui residential building, which also housed a restaurant, shops and a hostel.

Five mainland tourists were also thought to be trapped under the dangerously leaning building.

Ten people have now been confirmed killed in the quake and dozens remain unaccounted for across the city.