Earthquake in China kills at least 53 people

A powerful earthquake rocked western China Tuesday morning, killing at least 53 people and injuring dozens more in a mountainous region near Tibet and Nepal. 

The quake hit the Tibet region around 9 a.m. at a 7.1 magnitude, according to the US Geological Survey – while Chinese officials recorded its strength at 6.8. 

Subsequent aftershocks followed with magnitudes of up to 4.4. 

In addition to the dead, at least 62 have been wounded, the official Xinhua News Agency said, citing regional disaster relief headquarters in the area. 

However, the number of casualties could grow. The 53 dead were killed in Tibet and information on the toll in remote mountainous areas near the epicenter in Nepal was not immediately available.

Roughly 1,500 rescue workers were sent out to search for victims among the rubble left behind by the earthquake and aftershocks, the Ministry of Emergency Management said. 

The epicenter of the quake was located about 50 miles northeast of Mount Everest and several communities in both China and Nepal are nearby.

The closest communities are located within just three miles of the epicenter.

Around 6,900 people live within 12 miles of the epicenter on the Tibet side, Xinhua reported. 

The region is vulnerable to earthquakes because it sits above the intersection of the India and Eurasia plates which can create uplifts in the Himalayan mountains when they collide — and even add height to some of the world’s tallest summits. 

At least 10 quakes of a magnitude of 6 or higher have shaken the area over the past century, according to the USGS.

With Post wires