China’s Sichuan earthquake death toll rises to 12, over 100 injured
The quake resulted in cracks in a major highway connecting Yibin and Xuyong County of Sichuan’s Luzhou city. Some sections of the highway have been shut.
News Desk
In China, at least 12 people were killed and over 100 injured after two strong earthquakes jolted the southwest Sichuan province.
While the first 6-magnitude earthquake shook Changning county of Yibin city late yesterday, the second tremor of 5.3-magnitude hit the area this morning.
A series of at least four aftershocks were felt in a span of 40 minutes after the first quake, the strongest of which had a magnitude of 5.1.
More than 4,000 people were relocated as dozens of structures collapsed. An emergency response team and local police are trying to evacuate the people to safety and provide disaster relief.
Local media reported that the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration and the Ministry of Emergency Management have dispatched 5,000 tents, 10,000 folding beds and 20,000 quilts to the quake-hit areas.
The quake resulted in cracks in a major highway connecting Yibin and Xuyong County of Sichuan’s Luzhou city. Some sections of the highway have been shut.
The US Geological Survey put the magnitude of the main quake at 5.8, adding that “extensive damage is probable and the disaster is likely widespread”.
Earthquakes regularly strike Sichuan, where a powerful 7.9-magnitude quake left 87,000 people dead or missing in 2008.
