Magnitude 7.0 earthquake in Tibet kills at least 16, Chinese officials say
A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck Baqên County in the Nagqu region of China’s Tibet on Thursday night local time, killing at least 16 people and collapsing hundreds of homes, according to Chinese state media and local officials cited by the BBC, CBS News and The Associated Press. Rescue work continued on Friday in the remote, high-altitude area.
What happened: The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake struck at 10:33 p.m. local time, with its epicenter about 119 miles east-northeast of Nagqu, in a sparsely populated part of northern Tibet, CBS News reported. The USGS put the depth at 11 miles, while Xinhua, citing the China Earthquake Networks Center, put it at 6.2 miles, according to CBS News. China’s national broadcaster CCTV said it was the biggest earthquake in the region in five years, CBS News reported.
The toll so far: At least 16 people were killed, Chinese state media said. Injury counts have risen as reports came in: early reports cited 54 injured, local media later reported 65, the BBC said, and the Nagqu city government told a news conference on Friday that 76 people were hurt as of 1 p.m. local time, China News Service reported. Officials said 339 homes collapsed or were damaged, according to China News Service.
The rescue: More than 5,000 rescue workers from regional, city and county levels have been deployed, officials told the Friday news conference, according to China News Service. Supplies including tents, prefabricated housing units and winter clothing arrived in the region, CBS News reported. Roads and power were cut off in parts of the area, which sits at about 4,800 meters (15,750 feet) above sea level, the BBC reported.
What is still unclear: The figures come from Chinese state media and local officials and have not been independently confirmed. The BBC noted that state media is often the only source of information on Tibet, which China tightly controls. Officials said aftershocks and secondary disasters remain a risk and that the figures will be updated.
Sources
- CBS News — At least 16 people killed by powerful 7.0 magnitude earthquake in Tibet, officials say
- BBC News — Powerful earthquake hits Tibet, killing 16 people, reports say
- AP News — Rescuers search for survivors after deadly earthquake in China’s Tibet region
- China News Service — 西藏巴青7.0级地震已致16人遇难、76人受伤