Two more bodies were discovered Friday in Taiwan in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake, as the government ratcheted up search and rescue efforts before the critical 72-hour window to find survivors ends the next morning.
The powerful quake, registering magnitude 7.2 according to Taiwan authorities and 7.7 according to the Japanese weather agency, struck the self-governed island Wednesday, leaving about 1,100 people injured and more than 600 people stranded in remote areas.
The two bodies found Friday will not be included in the official death toll, which currently stands at 10, until their identities are confirmed, officials said.
In the aftermath of the disaster, authorities have been scrambling to restore roads to rescue stranded people.
In a mountainous region in Hualien County, 10 people still remained unaccounted for, while 82 people, including those with health issues, were airlifted by helicopter, according to the officials.
Many among the airlifted were Taiwanese, while others included Japanese, U.S., Hong Kong, Malaysian and Singaporean citizens, according to data from Taiwan's rescue authorities.
Two Japanese women, a mother in her 60s and her daughter in her 40s, were rescued from a mountainside hotel in the Taroko National Park in the county, they told reporters.
The two, who did not sustain any injuries, were traveling in Taiwan from their home in New Zealand.
The authorities continued delivering food and water, as well as other items necessary for survival, by helicopter to hundreds of people who were stranded at the hotel in Taroko and pupils and teachers of a boarding school.
Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa said Friday in Tokyo that Japan will provide $1 million in aid to Taiwan for disaster relief and recovery work through the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association.
In Hualien City, workers began demolition of a residential building tilted precariously by the quake. Taiwan prosecutors are probing whether faulty construction was a contributing factor.
Related coverage:
Japan to extend $1 million aid to quake-hit Taiwan
Taiwan quake injured toll rises to 1,100 with 15 missing, 10 dead
