Taipei: Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) on Thursday announced a dedicated bank account for cash donations as it works to establish a relief fund for people affected by the magnitude 7.1 earthquake that struck Japan's Kumamoto Prefecture on Tuesday.

According to Focus Taiwan, the Mega Bank account (021-09-01-7741) will accept donations from the public from Aug. 1 to Aug. 31. Mega Bank's bank code is 017. In a show of support, Presidential Office spokesperson Karen Kuo stated that President Lai Ching-te, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim, and Premier Cho Jung-tai will each contribute NT$200,000 (US$6,162) to the account.

Kuo also highlighted the mutual support between Taiwan and Japan during challenging times. She encouraged the public to extend their goodwill to the earthquake-affected areas to help residents return to normal life promptly.

Separately, Hsu Kuo-yung, secretary-general of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, announced he would donate one month's salary to the relief fund to encourage more contributions.

As of 7:30 a.m. Thursday, the earthquake had resulted in 17 fatalities, and caused 22,950 homes to lose electricity and 74,800 homes to go without water, as reported by the Kumamoto prefectural government.