Rescuers were headed to the site of a magnitude 5.5 earthquake yesterday in a region of southwestern China at the base of the Tibetan Plateau that is prone to deadly quakes.
Roads into the area have been blocked by rockslides, although there have been no reported casualties or other damage.
The temblor struck at 3:49 am at a relatively shallow depth of 10km in Sichuan Province’s mountainous Luding County, the US Geological Survey said.
Photo: AP
Although magnitude 5.5 quakes are not particularly strong, shallow temblors are more likely to cause damage.
Chinese state-run Xinhua news agency said about 100 rescuers were on their way to the site, but it gave no details on their work expertise or duties.
China typically mobilizes firefighters, paramilitary troops and local volunteers as first responders to earthquakes and wildfires in remote mountainous regions with limited roads.
A magnitude 6.8 quake struck the same region in September last year, killing more than 90 people, injuring more than 400 and destroying or damaging thousands of buildings.
The China Earthquake Networks Center said the magnitude was 5.6 and the depth was 11km. Aftershocks followed in the area, including one registering magnitude 4.9.
About 200km from the provincial capital, Chengdu, Luding is in the Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau, where tectonic plates grind up against each other.
China’s deadliest earthquake in recent years was a magnitude 7.9 quake in 2008 that killed about 90,000 people in Sichuan.
The temblor devastated towns, schools and rural communities outside Chengdu, leading to years of rebuilding with more quake-resistant materials.
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