Photo:CCTV

 

Photo:CCTV

There have been nine confirmed deaths following a 6.8-magnitude earthquake that jolted Dingri county in Shigatse of Xizang Autonomous Region at 9:05 am on Tuesday, according to Xinhua. But no specific numbers have been released yet. House collapsed in the region, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

The local authorities have mobilized personnel from transportation, water resources, housing and urban-rural development, township officials, and village cadres to carry out rescue operations. At the same time, they are organizing the safe evacuation of residents to prevent the impact of aftershocks, the governor of Dingri county introduced.

According to the Ministry of Emergency Management, at 9:20 am, 75 personnel and six vehicles from the Fire Brigade of Shigatse  were mobilized and on standby. A forward team of 15 personnel and three vehicles was also heading toward the earthquake epicenter. 

By 9:45 am, a total of 215 people were moving toward the epicenter, including the Xizang Forest Fire Brigade’s forward command, consisting of 10 personnel and three vehicles, and 90 members from the Special Operations team. 

More than 500 members of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) forces, the Armed Police Forces as well as the militia and reserve forces are fully prepared to mobilize, according to China Military.

The epicenter was monitored at 28.5 degrees north latitude and 87.45 degrees east longitude. The quake struck at a depth of 10 km, said a report issued by the China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC), according to Xinhua.
 
There are seven villages within a 5-kilometer radius of the earthquake and two towns within a 20-kilometer radius. The average elevation within a 5-kilometer area around the epicenter is approximately 4,259 meters, according to CCTV News. 

An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 jolted 90 km Northeast of Lobuche, Nepal at 01:05:16 GMT on Tuesday, the US Geological Survey said. The epicenter, with a depth of 10.0 km, was initially determined to be at 28.58 degrees north latitude and 87.39 degrees east longitude, according to Xinhua.

Global Times