Thaindian News

BEIJING (BNO NEWS) — A powerful earthquake rocked Qinhai province in northwest China on Wednesday morning, seismologists said, killing at least 300 people and leaving thousands more injured. A strong aftershock followed more than an hour later.

The 7.1-magnitude earthquake at 7.49 a.m. local time was centered about 18.6 miles (30 kilometers) from Jiegu Township, the government seat of Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. It struck about 20.5 miles (33 kilometers) deep, making it a shallow earthquake, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center. The U.S. Geological Survey measured the magnitude of the earthquake at 6.9.

The China Earthquake Administration said the earthquake was felt strongly and said many homes had collapsed. The Administration said level two of the national earthquake emergency plan was immediately activated, and it was later upgraded it to level one - the highest level.

Qinhai province sent a 62-member earthquake disaster emergency rescue team to the region, while the Qamdo Tibet Autonomous Region dispatched a 40-member rescue team. The China Earthquake Administration also sent a rescue team of 15 members to provide assistance. Other rescue teams are on standby.

The state-run Xinhua news agency cited Huang Limin, deputy secretary-general of the government of the Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Yushu, as saying that at least 300 people had been killed while more than 8,000 others were injured. The Chinese government previously said that at least 67 people had been killed, and hundreds injured. Xinhua reported that ‘many others’ are still buried under the rubble.

“Our soldiers have pulled 10 people from the collapsed houses, but four of them had died,” said Wu Yong, commander of the Yushu Military Area Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army. “The death toll may rise further as lots of houses collapsed.”

Yong told Xinhua that the soldiers are now putting up tents and transporting oxygen to prepare for treating the injured. “But roads leading to the airport have been damaged, hampering the rescue efforts,” he added.

“There are still lots of others who are injured and being treated at local hospitals,” Zhuohuaxia, a publicity official of a Tibetan ethnic group with the Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Yushu, told Xinhua. Huang Limin, deputy secretary-general of the Yushu prefecture government, said a rescue headquarters has been set up in Jiegu.

Xinhua reported that some primary schools had also collapsed, leaving pupils buried underneath the rubble.

Karsum Nyima, the deputy director of the Yushu TV News Department said there are many vulnerable structures in the region. “I saw the roof of a Buddhist pagoda in a park collapsed,” he said. “The houses here are almost all made of wood and earthen walls. Some collapsed when the quake happened.” Xinhua estimated that more than 85 percent of the homes in Jiegu Township had been destroyed.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, approximately 100 people were exposed to ‘extreme’ shaking, which may result in ‘very heavy’ damage to vulnerable structures. Some 3,000 others perceived ‘violent’ shaking, while 5,000 more were exposed to ’severe’ shaking.

“Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are highly vulnerable to earthquake shaking, though some resistant structures exist,” the U.S. Geological Survey said.

A strong aftershock struck the same region more than an hour after the first earthquake. The earthquake at 9.25 a.m. local time had a preliminary magnitude of 6.3, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center. It was not immediately clear if the new earthquake caused additional damage or casualties.

Three other - and smaller - aftershocks rattled the area earlier. A 4.8-magnitude aftershock struck at 8.01 a.m. local time, about 10 minutes after the initial earthquake. A 4.3-magnitude earthquake rattled the area several minutes later, and was followed by a 3.8-magnitude aftershock at 8.59 a.m. local time.

On June 15, 1982, a 5.6-magnitude earthquake struck about 210 miles (338 kilometers) southeast of the epicenter of Wednesday’s earthquake, killing at least 11 people.