Quake hits south-western China, killing at least 24

Mar 10, 2011, 15:11 GMT

Volunteers People help injured at a temporary settlement after a 5.8 magnitude earthquake in the Yingjiang county in southwest China\'s Yunnan province, 10 March 2011. At least 22 people died 10 March in a magnitude-5.8 earthquake that hit south-western China\'s Yunnan province, media reports said. The quake in Yingjiang County injured about 200 people, more than 30 of them seriously, state television reported. The tremor was believed to have caused serious damage, according to Liu Jie of the China Earthquake Networks Centre\'s forecast department, the official Xinhua news agency reported. EPA/STR CHINA OUT

Beijing - At least 24 people died Thursday in a magnitude- 5.8 earthquake that hit south-western China's Yunnan province, media reports said.

The quake in Yingjiang County injured about 200 people, more than 30 of them seriously, state television reported.

Rescue workers were scouring the rubble for survivors while injured people were being attended to by medics on the streets.

The tremor caused serious damage, according to Liu Jie of the China Earthquake Networks Centre's forecast department, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

More than 1,200 houses reportedly collapsed and some 17,000 were damaged when the quake struck at 12:58 pm (0458 GMT), Xinhua reported. Parts of a hotel and supermarket also collapsed.

The quake caused power outages, said Wei Gang, the head of the county government. Nearly 1,000 soldiers were deployed to take part in rescue efforts.

Some 127,000 people were moved to safety, the government said.

The area was hit by three aftershocks of up to 4.7 on the Richter scale within 10 minutes of the quake.

State media reported that the central government has sent 5,000 tents, 10,000 blankets and 10,000 items of clothes to the affected area.

Around 1,200 minor tremors have reportedly been recorded in the area in the past two months.

Read more about China Quakes