In the aftermath of a powerful earthquake in northwest China, at least 118 lives have been lost, with hundreds more reported injured.
The quake, striking just before midnight, devastated remote villages in Gansu province, leaving a trail of collapsed homes and shattered communities.
Quest Times reports that authorities in Gansu province disclosed that the shallow tremor resulted in the deaths of at least 105 individuals, with almost 400 others sustaining injuries by Tuesday morning.
In neighbouring Qinghai province, the city of Haidong, also experienced 13 fatalities, 182 injuries, and 20 individuals missing, as reported by state broadcaster CCTV.
Moreover, the quake’s impact was severe, damaging thousands of homes, many of which were precarious brick structures.
Terrified residents sought refuge in the freezing streets as their homes crumbled, while heart-wrenching footage captured personal belongings scattered amidst the debris of collapsed houses.
“I was almost scared to death. Look at how my hands and legs are shaking,” said a woman of about 30 in a video posted to a social media account associated with the state-run People’s Daily newspaper.
Besides, this earthquake stands as China’s deadliest since 2014, when over 600 lives were lost in Yunnan province; the western regions of China bear the scars of frequent seismic activity, with the 2008 Sichuan quake claiming over 87,000 lives, including many schoolchildren.
The US Geological Survey reported a magnitude-5.9 quake with a shallow depth, striking around 100 kilometers from Gansu’s capital, Lanzhou, at 11:59 pm local time.
Moreso, China’s state news agency, Xinhua, cited a magnitude of 6.2, with tremors felt as far away as Xi’an, approximately 570 kilometers from the epicenter.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has therefore, called for “all-out efforts” in the ongoing search and rescue operations, emphasizing the challenging conditions with freezing temperatures in the high-altitude area.
In addition, officials have warned of possible aftershocks with a magnitude exceeding 5.0 in the coming days.
As search and rescue teams work tirelessly, provincial officials reported nearly 5,000 homes damaged in Gansu. Power and water supplies were disrupted initially, but efforts are underway to restore normalcy.
Emergency services, including over 1,400 firefighters and rescue personnel, have been mobilized to the disaster zone, with additional resources, such as drinking water, blankets, and food supplies, dispatched.
Conclusively, the central government has allocated 200 million yuan ($28 million) in relief funding to address the immediate needs of affected communities.