New footage shows an Australian couple starting a hike moments before the Taiwan earthquake | Taiwan

Rescue efforts are still underway in Taiwan's Taroko National Park to find two missing Australian citizens, who have not been seen for six days after a massive earthquake struck the island.

The couple, identified by local government officials as Neo Siu Chu and Sim Huy Kok, went missing after a 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck the island at 7.58am on Wednesday.

The earthquake, the largest to hit Taiwan in 25 years, killed 13 people and injured more than 1,100 others.

Hualien County in eastern Taiwan, located just kilometers from the epicenter, was particularly hard hit.

Rescue efforts initially focused on people trapped inside collapsed buildings in the city of Hualien, but have since moved to the surrounding Taroko National Park, where the quake caused large landslides.

While 33 people remain trapped but have been found inside the park, five people are still missing, including three Taiwanese citizens.

Rescue services have now narrowed their search to the Shakadang Mountain Trail, a popular hiking tourist route in the mountains of the national park, according to Jian Hongqing, rescue operation director of the Hualien County Fire Department.

CCTV footage shows the couple, who also hold Singaporean passports, getting off a bus near the head of the road. Another video, shared by a German tourist with The Guardian, shows the couple starting their journey about 500 meters from the road, just 25 minutes before the earthquake.

“So far, we have not been able to locate them,” Jian said.

But a spot about 800 meters along the track has been identified as an area of ​​interest for the search.

As the valley through which Chakadang Road winds is filled with rubble and rocks, rescue workers struggle to make progress.

“There is no way for us to cut the rocks manually, so we have to wait for the excavator to arrive,” Jian said. “But right now, the road is blocked by big boulders.”

With more than 785 aftershocks recorded in the region since Wednesday, and more still being felt, rescue operations may continue to be hampered by the risk of more landslides.

“We are still constantly experiencing severe aftershocks,” Jian said. “This is the biggest risk to the workers carrying out the rescue operation. It is very dangerous.”

Video: Taiwan earthquake causes a rock to collide with a car

The situation may also be exacerbated by a change in weather. He added: “Due to the heavy rain in the afternoon, we were only able to conduct a search and rescue operation between the morning and midday.”

As emergency services begin their sixth day of operations, and with rain expected to continue throughout the coming days, the rescue operation turns into a race against time.

“The average person trapped in this environment has little chance of surviving after seven days,” Jian said. “Things are getting to a point where we are becoming less optimistic.”

Additional reporting by Kenza Wilkes

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