NPR News

Taiwan holds steady in massive earthquake; Discontented voters show up in Wisconsin

NPR | By Mansee Khurana

Published April 3, 2024 at 8:05 AM EDT

In this image taken from a video footage run by TVBS, a partially collapsed building is seen in Hualien, eastern Taiwan on Wednesday, April 3, 2024.

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The ground began to shake during the morning rush hour in Taiwan. A few hours later, Japan and the Philippines felt the effects of the 7.4 magnitude earthquake in the form of tsunami warnings. At least seven people are dead, officials said, and more than 700 are missing, The Associated Press reported. Roads and train lines near the epicenter remain blocked, and over 80,000 people are without power.

NPR's Emily Feng told Up First that she felt the quake from her home in Taipei. She was 120 miles away from the epicenter, but still felt aftershocks from the earthquake for three hours. Earthquakes are so common in Taiwan that she kept going on with her day despite it being some of the longest shaking she's ever experienced. There wasn't as much damage as you'd expect from an earthquake of this magnitude. The last time an earthquake of this size rocked Taiwan, 2,000 people died. This time, so far, the damages and deaths are minimal in comparison. Feng says this is a testament to how Taiwan has earthquake proofed itself in the last two decades.

The winners in last night's Wisconsin primary were the usual suspects. However, Donald Trump and President Joe Biden are seeing discontent among their parties rise. The "uninstructed" option received more than 47,000 votes in the state's Democratic primary. Movements to protest the president's handling of the war in Gaza encouraged voters to pick this option, which is similar to the "uncommitted" option on primary ballots in Michigan and Minnesota. Nikki Haley, who dropped out of the Republican primary race last month, received about 13% of the votes in the state's presidential primary.

Ben Wilker, the chair of the Wisconsin Democratic Party, told NPR network reporter from WUWM Maayan Silver that it's a good sign that people voted, even if they didn't vote for Biden in this primary because it shows that people haven't given up. "They just don't want this heartbreaking tragedy to continue," Wilker said on Up First. On the Republican side, the votes for Haley are a sign that there is still a bloc of Republican voters who are not ready to vote for Trump.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged an airstrike that killed seven aid workers in a video statement yesterday. He said Israel is investigating the "unintentional" incident. World Central Kitchen, an organization founded by celebrity chef José Andrés, said that the airstrike that killed its workers happened in a "deconflicted zone," and the organization had been coordinating travel with the Israeli military to ensure that the convoy could deliver food to Gaza safely. The nonprofit has decided to suspend its mission as a result of the airstrike.

Several other aid groups have also suspended operations in Gaza, including Anera, which has been in the region for a half a century. As famine set in, Gaza's starving population is relying on aid to help feed its residents. Rebecca Abou-Chedid, a board member at Anera told NPR's Steve Inskeep that in order to resume operations, they'd need an immediate ceasefire and a surge of aid.

The science of siblings

Charles Town, WV - February 24, 2024 - Siblings Coffee Roasters owner Libby Powell poses with her brother Benjamin Withem outside her Main Street coffee shop. Photo by Susana Raab In her hand she's holding an early photograph of the siblings they are recreating.

The Science of Siblings is a new series from NPR exploring the ways our siblings can influence us, from our money and our mental health all the way down to our very molecules.
About 80% of children in the U.S. grow up with a sibling. Although sibling research is relatively new, studies show that these relationships can deeply affect our mental and physical health over the course of our lives — for better or for worse. Libby Powell yearned for a sibling her whole life. Several foster siblings came and went, and her mother experienced a miscarriage. Then came baby Benjamin Withem.

Listen to Powell and Withem discuss how their relationship inspired the creation of their family's coffee shop, or read their story her

Picture show

This aerial photo depicts the sawmills of Lagos, Nigeria. The timber from the country's rainforests, some of the most heavily deforested in the world, are processed in this coastal city, polluting the lagoons.

Some scientists argue that the age of humans — also known as the Anthropocene era — began in 1952, when the U.S. tested its first thermonuclear bomb. Proponents of this view say that this event should mark the beginning of a distinct chapter in the history of the world, when humans began to make significant and irreversible changes to the physical substance and structure of Earth. However, last week, experts decided not to make 1952 the official start of the Anthropocene era, arguing that the scope of time was too narrow.

See photos from The Anthropocene Project, a multidisciplinary body of work that seeks to capture the ways in which humans have undeniably altered the world's landscape.

Before you go

Melba Pattillo Beals, 82, went on to receive a master's degree from Columbia University and a doctoral degree at the University of San Francisco.

The last two survivors of the Tulsa race massacre presented their case for reparations yesterday. If their appeal is successful, the case will go to the Tulsa County District Court for trial. (via Public Radio Tulsa).

After her father died of a sudden heart attack, Roxanne Olson raced back home to California. In the airport, her unsung hero helped her navigate the busy Chicago O'Hare International Airport.

Paul McCartney has said on several occasions that "Blackbird" was inspired by the Little Rock Nine, a group of Black students who challenged schools' racial segregation. A member of the Little Rock Nine says Beyoncé's version of the classic song on her new album, Cowboy Carter, is the story of her life.

This newsletter was edited by Majd Al-Waheidi. Suzanne Nuyen contributed.