TAXKORGAN, Xinjiang (Xinhua) – Eight people have been confirmed dead and 23 others were injured after a 5.5-magnitude earthquake jolted Taxkorgan County in northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region at 5:58 a.m. Thursday.
So far, the quake has left lives of more than 12,000 people affected. A total of 9,200 people have been relocated to safe places.
The injured people have been sent to hospital for treatment. More than1,000 soldiers and police officers, and 1,500 civilians have rushed to the quake-stricken areas for rescue.
Wang Fuyou, Communist Party chief of the county, said the quake followed by frequent aftershocks was felt strongly.
Cracks appeared on walls of houses in the county seat. Some people were buried after adobe houses near the epicenter collapsed, according to Wang.
The county government has sent personnel to search for the buried people in Quzgun Village, the worst-hit village in the quake with a population of 449, Wang said.