Evacuated residents wait in an emergency tent after an earthquake in Luxian county, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, on Thursday. Three people were dead and 100 others injured as of Thursday night after the 6.0-magnitude earthquake. Photo: thepaper.cn

At least three people died and 100 were injured as of Thursday night after a 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck Luxian county, Luzhou, Southwest China's Sichuan Province early Thursday. 

The quake occurred at 4:33 am and was measured at 6.0 magnitude. As of noon, 1,400 houses had collapsed in Luxian, 6,400 severely damaged. Over 70,000 people have been safely relocated, according to media reports. 

Luxian county has a population of around 760,000, according to the population census in 2020. 

Several residents in Luzhou confirmed to the Global Times that they felt the extremely strong tremor caused by the earthquake. A traveler surnamed Tang, who was staying at a hotel 40 kilometers from the epicenter, told the Global Times, "I woke up to the tremor and saw the chandelier in my room shaking and the desk was shaking too. It's been a long time since an earthquake of this magnitude has occurred."

A local hotel employee said earthquakes often occur in Luzhou, but it was clear that the magnitude of Thursday's quake was significantly higher. Another employee said, "Because there are often earthquakes in Sichuan, we are used to it. When the quake stops, we will go back to sleep and carry on with our normal daytime work."

Luzhou is famous for its baijiu liquor. Due to the earthquake, more than 200 tons of highly concentrated baijiu spilt from over 170 ceramic cylinders in a local baijiu distillery which stores a total of 1,818 ceramic cylinders containing 1,105 tons of baijiu. 

Highly concentrated baijiu is a flammable and explosive, hazardous item, and 55 fire brigade members were dispatched to dilute the liquor to minimize the risk of fire

According to local media reports, strong tremors have also been felt in the cities of Chengdu, Sichuan's provincial capital, Nanchong and Suining.

The Central Emergency Management Department sent a working group led by the deputy director of the China Earthquake Administration to the scene to manage emergency operations. A preliminary investigation shows that the highways connecting Luzhou and within Luzhou remain undamaged. Road sections with falling rocks and landslides in Luzhou have been cleared.

Sichuan Province is located on the Sichuan seismic belt, one of the regions in China where earthquakes occur frequently, and the tragic Wenchuan earthquake in 2008 killed over 60,000 people. 

The earthquake was forecast by China's earthquake warning network before it struck, with residents in Luzhou and nearby cities receiving a warning message several seconds in advance. Full rescue efforts are still underway.