Beijing, June 18: As many as 13 people were killed and 199 others injured in a 6-magnitude earthquake that hit China’s Sichuan Province, the Ministry of Emergency Management said Tuesday. The earthquake hit the Changning county at 10.55 p.m. on Monday.
As of 4 p.m. Tuesday, 20 people trapped in the debris were rescued and 731 evacuated, according to the ministry, Xinhua news agency reported. Safety inspection and rescue efforts are underway, with fire-fighters rushing to the quake-hit regions to conduct rescue and search operations.
The China Earthquake Administration has deployed 80 people in the quake-hit regions for real-time monitoring and damage assessment. Meanwhile, the ministry and the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration have dispatched 5,000 tents, 10,000 folding beds and 20,000 quilts to the quake-hit areas. The earthquake had affected 142,832 people and destroyed 73 houses, the ministry said. Most of the deaths were caused by damaged houses, according to rescuers. Official media reported that early warning systems installed in Chengdu and Yibin sounded alarms a minute before the quake struck. The deaths and injuries were reported from across the province. People in Yibin said aftershocks were felt in the following half-an-hour of the earthquakes. Hu Yukun, a resident of Changning County, said the quake was quite strong, and that “the ground kept shaking for about a minute.” Local policeman He Zexi said he first felt the electric fan in his house shaking and then the chandelier began to shake. “It lasted about 30 seconds,” he said. In provincial capital Chengdu, an early warning system alerted the people about one minute before the earthquake struck. When the countdown ended, strong tremor was felt. The Ministry of Emergency Management and the provincial department of emergency management have activated an “emergency response”, according to Xinhua. The ministry has sent a work team to the affected areas to provide guidance in rescue and disaster relief.