Powerful earthquake hits Kyrgyzstan-China border, kills three
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck the border region between Kyrgyzstan and Xinjiang on Tuesday, collapsing homes and killing at least three people while injuring five, according to Chinese state media.
China's Earthquake Administration, in coordination with the Office of the Earthquake Relief Headquarters and the Ministry of Emergency Management, initiated rescue efforts.
Security footage shared on social media, which Reuters verified, showed passengers rushing to safety as the quake shook a railway station. The Xinjiang railway department suspended operations, affecting 27 trains, Xinhua News reported. The quake, felt strongly in Urumqi, Korla, Kashgar, Yining, and surrounding areas, prompted numerous posts on China's Weibo social media platform.
The quake's epicenter, recorded at 2:09 a.m. (1809 GMT) at a depth of 22 km (13 miles), was in Wushi County, a mountainous area of northwest China's Xinjiang region. Within a 20-km radius of the epicenter, five villages were affected, Xinhua News reported, citing the Xinjiang Earthquake Agency. As of 7:30 p.m. Tuesday (1130 GMT), no missing persons were reported.
State television channel CCTV reported that over 12,400 people affected by the quake were evacuated as rescue operations continued. The China Earthquake Networks Center recorded 40 aftershocks by 8 a.m. (0000 GMT).
In the past 24 hours, Xinjiang has experienced several significant earthquakes. The emergency ministry in neighboring Kazakhstan reported the latest quake with a magnitude of 6.7. Tremors from these earthquakes were also felt in Uzbekistan.
