Powerful 7.1 earthquake strikes near China’s border with Kyrgyzstan

Hong Kong CNN —

A magnitude-7.1 earthquake rocked a mountainous and remote part of China’s far western Xinjiang region early Tuesday, with multiple injuries reported by state media and heavy tremors felt in Central Asian countries hundreds of miles away.

The quake struck Wushi county, also known as Uqturpan county, in Aksu prefecture near the Kyrgyzstan border shortly after 2 a.m. local time, state-run news agency Xinhua reported.

Strong tremors caused two houses to collapse and downed two major power lines near the epicenter, though electricity was quickly restored, according to Xinhua.

The Xinjiang railway authority immediately sealed off routes in areas affected by the quake and suspended 27 trains, Xinhua reported.

Three people were hospitalized in a township 26 kilometers (16 miles) from the epicenter, state broadcaster CCTV reported. A child was rescued from the rubble of their house in that township, the broadcaster said.

Nearly 200 rescue workers have been dispatched to the quake zone, and hundreds more are being assembled, Xinhua reported.

More than 50 aftershocks above magnitude 3 were reported as of 11 a.m. Tuesday, according to the state-run China Earthquake Networks Center.

Regional impact

The quake’s epicenter is a remote, mountainous and sparsely populated area at an altitude above 3,000 meters (9,842 feet), CCTV said.

Five villages are located within a radius of 20 kilometers from the epicenter, which is about 50 kilometers from Wushi county’s main urban area, Xinhua reported.

Wushi county has a population of 205,000 people, according to China’s latest census in 2020.

Heavy tremors were felt in cities hundreds of miles away, including the Silk Road oasis of Kashgar and Hotan in southern