A 6.2-magnitude earthquake that struck an ethnic county in Gansu, northwest China, and the neighbouring province of Qinghai at midnight on Monday resulted in at least 116 fatalities, according to the local earthquake relief headquarters.
The shallow earthquake, which had a focal depth of 10 kilometres, shocked the area on Monday at 11:59 p.m., according to China Earthquake Networks Centre.
According to experts, shallow earthquakes cause serious damage to the infrastructure.
The epicentre of the earthquake Liugou township is about 8 kilometres from the county seat of Jishishan Bao’an, Dongxiang, Sala autonomous county in Linxia Hui autonomous prefecture in Gansu.
Qinghai province is close to the Tibet-Himalayan region, which is prone to frequent earthquakes Because of the shifting of continental plates.
Eyewitnesses from the area said that the earthquake damaged houses, roads, and other infrastructure. Water was disrupted and power was cut in several villages.
Tuesday is expected to see an increase in Jishishan’s daily low temperature of minus 10 degrees Celsius, according to local meteorological authorities.
More than 10,000 pieces of equipment, 88 fire engines, 12 search and rescue dogs, and 580 rescuers were dispatched to the disaster area by the provincial fire and rescue department.
In addition to ordering a safety inspection of the railroad tracks, the railway authority has halted passengers and trains travelling through the seismic zone.
Ren Zhenhe, Gansu’s governor, and Hu Changsheng, the head of the province’s ruling Communist Party, have hurried to the scene of the tragedy to take charge of rescue and relief operations.
Following the earthquake, Chinese President Xi Jinping directed intensive rescue operations to reduce the number of casualties.
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