In Tibet, a powerful earthquake kills at least fifty-three people

The earth shook on Tuesday, January 7, in the Himalayan region of Tibet, in southwest China, causing the collapse of several structures and the death of dozens of people.

“Fifty-three people died and 62 others were injured,” during this 6.8 magnitude earthquake which shook the canton of Dingri at 9:05 a.m. local time (2:05 a.m. in Paris), the New China news agency reported. A previous report reported 32 deaths.

The American Geological Survey (USGS) for its part reported an earthquake of magnitude 7.1 in the region. It was felt as far away as Kathmandu, Nepal.

“The tremors were very strongly felt in and around the canton of Dingri and many buildings collapsed near the epicenter”said public television CCTV, stressing that “multiple replicas” had been recorded, the largest being magnitude 4.4.

Videos broadcast by CCTV show white-colored houses at high altitude, with gutted walls and collapsed roofs, with many stones littering the ground. Other images from public television show firefighters in helmets and orange outfits heading towards the scene of the disaster. The Xinhua news agency said local authorities were visiting the canton’s various communes “in order to assess the repercussions of the earthquake”.

Frequent earthquakes

This canton, located at high altitude, has around 62,000 inhabitants and is located not far from the Chinese side of Everest. Temperatures there are around −8°C during the day and can drop to −18°C during the night, according to China’s National Meteorological Bureau.

While earthquakes are common in the region, Tuesday’s quake was the strongest recorded within a 200-kilometer radius in the past five years, the China Earthquake Network Center said.

In Nepal, in addition to Kathmandu, the areas around Namche and Lobuche, very close to the Everest base camp, were also hit by the earthquake and its aftershocks.

“It shook quite hard here, everyone is awake but we are not aware of any damage at the moment”said Jagat Prasad Bhusal, an official in the Namche region in northeastern Nepal.

The Himalayas lie on the divide between the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates and experience regular seismic activity. In 2015, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake killed nearly 9,000 people and injured more than 22,000 in Nepal, destroying more than 500,000 homes.