Deadly earthquake rattles China’s Sichuan
(Updates death toll)
Beijing, Sep 5 (EFE).- A strong earthquake hit the southwestern Chinese province of Sichuan on Monday, killing at least 21 people, local media reported.
The 6.8-magnitude quake struck at a depth of 16 kilometers (10 miles) at 12:52 pm local time with an epicenter detected in Luding county, some 200 km west of the city of Chengdu, which has a population of 20 million, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.
Seven people died in Luding county, while 14 were killed in Shimian county, both in Sichuan, China’s state news agency Xinhua reported.
Following a preliminary inspection, local authorities said that communication infrastructure had been cut at a number of villages in the affected area and reported landslides and damage to housing and roads, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
There are several villages within 5 kilometers of the epicenter, according to Xinhua.
China’s emergency management ministry deployed a response team to the stricken area.
The quake was felt in Chengdu, where some residents shared videos on social media showing swaying lamps and falling household objects.
Seismic activity is common in Sichuan province, which in 2008 was the scene of a magnitude-8 earthquake that left nearly 90,000 people dead or missing.
In recent weeks, Sichuan has grappled with a searing heat wave, a drought that has affected the production of electricity in some zones, wildfires and outbreaks of Covid-19 that led to a lockdown in Chengdu on Friday. EFE
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