#KNT Web Desk
Over 30 people were killed and several others injured when a powerful earthquake of 6.8-magnitude jolted Luding County in China’s southwest Sichuan province, PTI reported.
The epicentre of the quake, which occurred at 12:25 pm local time, was monitored at 29.59 degrees north latitude and 102.08 degrees east longitude at a depth of 16-km, China Earthquake Networks Centre was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua news agency.
The epicentre is 39-km away from the county seat of Luding and there are several villages within the 5-km range around the epicentre.
Official media reports quoted local officials as saying that more than 30 people were killed and over 30 others injured. Casualties were expected to go up as rescue teams fanned out into the affected areas.
Most people of the over 21-million strong population of Chengdu spent most part of the day outside their homes as aftershocks continued to shake the area.
Infrastructure, including water, electricity, transportation and telecommunication services was also damaged. “Heartfelt condolences to lives lost in the devastating earthquake in Sichuan on September 5 and prayers for the early recovery of the injured,” the Indian Embassy here tweeted.
Heartfelt condolences to lives lost in the devastating earthquake in Sichuan on September 5 and prayers for the early recovery of the injured.
— India in China (@EOIBeijing) September 5, 2022
Chinese President Xi Jinping has ordered all-out rescue efforts to minimize casualties stressing that saving lives should be taken as the primary task.
Sichuan province is located adjacent to Tibet. The Tibetan plateau is known to be prone to heavy earthquakes as it sits right over the place where the tectonic Eurasian and Indian plates meet, often colliding with huge force.
More than 69,000 people were killed when an 8.2 quake struck the province in 2008 and a magnitude 7 quake claimed 200 lives in 2013.
