A powerful earthquake on Tuesday in the Himalayan region of Tibet, in southwest China, left at least 53 dead and caused the collapse of “many buildings”, an earthquake felt as far away as neighboring Nepal.
1 minute
The 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck Dingri township, located near the Sino-Nepal border, at 9:05 a.m. (1:05 a.m. UT), according to China’s national earthquake agency (CENC). The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported a magnitude of 7.1.
Videos broadcast by Chinese state television CCTV show white-colored homes at high altitude, with gutted walls and collapsed roofs, with stones littering the ground.
Other images from the channel show vehicles buried under bricks or customers of a convenience store fleeing the store when the earthquake causes products on the shelves to fall to the ground.
Firefighters in orange uniforms arrived at the scene of the disaster, amid rubble and near survivors and elderly people wrapped in blankets, according to CCTV videos.
“ Fifty-three people died and 62 others were injured “, indicated the official New China news agency. A previous provisional report reported 32 deaths.
“ The tremors were very strongly felt in and around the canton of Dingri and many buildings collapsed near the epicenter. “, CCTV said..