BEIJING, Oct 23 — The number of people injured in a magnitude 7 earthquake that struck China's southwestern Tibet region has risen to 65, the local government said in a social media post today, while the death toll remained unchanged at 16.
The earthquake, with its epicentre in Nagqu, a sparsely populated, high-altitude city in northern Tibet, was the strongest to hit China since January 2024.
More than 300 police officers, including traffic and community police personnel, were deployed to the epicentre to carry out rescue and emergency relief operations, the Nagqu police department said in a separate post on messaging app WeChat early today.
Officers deployed to the area inspected homes for damage and helped residents relocate to safer locations, police said.
A video posted by police on Douyin, the Chinese sister app of TikTok, showed officers loading supplies onto a truck in the dark and inspecting a building and rubble using flashlights.
More than 12,000 people have been safely relocated, state news agency Xinhua reported.
Videos previously released by local official media showed residents leaving their homes and seeking shelter outdoors or in cars parked along the streets.
One resident said the strong earthquake had woken them and that they heard their house creaking during the tremor.
The China Earthquake Networks Centre said 413 aftershocks had been recorded.
In 2010, a magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck Yushu in neighbouring Qinghai province, killing at least 2,698 people and leaving nearly 300 missing.
