*

Quake hits mountainous, rural area near city of Chiayi

*

Hit shortly after midnight, reports of minor damage

*

TSMC evacuates factories in central and southern Taiwan

(Adds details from Chiayi in paragraphs 3-4)

TAIPEI, Jan 21 (Reuters) - A 6.4 magnitude earthquake

struck a mountainous, rural area of Taiwan's south on Tuesday

near the city of Chiayi, the island's weather administration

said, with reports of initial minor damage.

Chipmaker TSMC said it had evacuated staff at its factories

in central and southern Taiwan.

The quake shook buildings in the capital, Taipei. The quake

had a depth of 9.4 km (6 miles) with its epicentre in Dapu

township in Chiayi county, and hit shortly after midnight, the

weather administration said.

The fire department said three people were trapped in a

damaged building in the city of Tainan and rescue workers were

on their way. The Chiayi fire department told Reuters there were

no reports of major casualties so far in the city itself.

The science park in Tainan, home to major factories

including of chipmaker TSMC, said buildings were

evacuated.

Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is

prone to earthquakes.

In April, a 7.2 magnitude quake hit the east coast county of

Hualien, killing 13 people.

More than 100 people were killed in a quake in southern

Taiwan in 2016 and a 7.3 magnitude quake killed more than 2,000

people in 1999.