Strong earthquake kills at least 95 people in western China near Mount Everest
TIBET IS NOT CHINA
Ken Moritsugu
Tue, January 7, 2025
The Associated Press
BEIJING (AP) — A strong earthquake killed at least 95 people in Tibet on Tuesday and left many others trapped as dozens of aftershocks shook the high-altitude region of western China and across the border in Nepal.
Officials in the region said at a brief news conference that 130 others were injured, state broadcaster CCTV said.
Video on CCTV showed orange-suited rescue workers climbing piles of debris blocking homes in a heavily damaged village, while chunks that had been knocked off buildings littered streets and crushed cars in other areas.
State media reported that about 1,000 houses were damaged and 130 people were injured in addition to the deaths, citing the Tibet earthquake relief headquarters.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake measured magnitude 7.1 and was relatively shallow at a depth of about 10 kilometers (6 miles). China recorded the magnitude as 6.8.
The epicenter was about 75 kilometers (50 miles) northeast of Mount Everest, which straddles the China-Nepal border. The area is seismically active and is where the India and Eurasia plates clash and cause uplifts in the Himalayan mountains strong enough to change the heights of some of the world’s tallest peaks.
About 50 aftershocks were recorded in the three hours after the earthquake, and the Mount Everest scenic area on the Chinese side was closed after the quake.
About 1,500 fire and rescue workers were deployed to search for people, the Ministry of Emergency Management. Two hundred soldiers joined the search, CCTV said.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping. called for all-out efforts to rescue people, minimize casualties and resettle those whose homes were damaged. Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing, was dispatched to the area to guide the work.
CCTV said there are a handful of communities within 5 kilometers (3 miles) of the epicenter, which was 380 kilometers (240 miles) from Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, and about 23 kilometers (14 miles) from the region’s second-largest city of Shigatse, known as Xigaze in Chinese.
The average altitude in the area around the epicenter is about 4,200 meters (13,800 feet), the China Earthquake Networks Center said in a social media post.
In Nepal, authorities asked officials in the mountainous area near the epicenter to search for any casualties or damage.
The National Emergency Operation Center in Kathmandu said people in northeastern Nepal strongly felt the earthquake but there were no immediate reports of injuries or damage to houses.
A police officer in Solukhumbu district, where Mount Everest is located, said by telephone that there were no reports of damage. The area, often crowded with climbers and hikers, was empty in the depth of winter. Many residents move to the south to avoid the harsh winter.
About 230 kilometers (140 miles) from the epicenter in Nepal's capital, Kathmandu, the earthquake woke up residents and sent them running out of their homes into the streets.
There have been 10 earthquakes of at least magnitude 6 in the area where Tuesday's quake hit over the past century, the USGS said.
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Associated Press writer Binaj Gurubacharya in Kathmandu, Nepal, and researcher Yu Bing in Beijing contributed to this report.
Ken Moritsugu, The Associated Press
Ken Moritsugu
Tue, January 7, 2025
The Associated Press
BEIJING (AP) — A strong earthquake killed at least 95 people in Tibet on Tuesday and left many others trapped as dozens of aftershocks shook the high-altitude region of western China and across the border in Nepal.
Officials in the region said at a brief news conference that 130 others were injured, state broadcaster CCTV said.
Video on CCTV showed orange-suited rescue workers climbing piles of debris blocking homes in a heavily damaged village, while chunks that had been knocked off buildings littered streets and crushed cars in other areas.
State media reported that about 1,000 houses were damaged and 130 people were injured in addition to the deaths, citing the Tibet earthquake relief headquarters.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake measured magnitude 7.1 and was relatively shallow at a depth of about 10 kilometers (6 miles). China recorded the magnitude as 6.8.
The epicenter was about 75 kilometers (50 miles) northeast of Mount Everest, which straddles the China-Nepal border. The area is seismically active and is where the India and Eurasia plates clash and cause uplifts in the Himalayan mountains strong enough to change the heights of some of the world’s tallest peaks.
About 50 aftershocks were recorded in the three hours after the earthquake, and the Mount Everest scenic area on the Chinese side was closed after the quake.
About 1,500 fire and rescue workers were deployed to search for people, the Ministry of Emergency Management. Two hundred soldiers joined the search, CCTV said.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping. called for all-out efforts to rescue people, minimize casualties and resettle those whose homes were damaged. Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing, was dispatched to the area to guide the work.
CCTV said there are a handful of communities within 5 kilometers (3 miles) of the epicenter, which was 380 kilometers (240 miles) from Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, and about 23 kilometers (14 miles) from the region’s second-largest city of Shigatse, known as Xigaze in Chinese.
The average altitude in the area around the epicenter is about 4,200 meters (13,800 feet), the China Earthquake Networks Center said in a social media post.
In Nepal, authorities asked officials in the mountainous area near the epicenter to search for any casualties or damage.
The National Emergency Operation Center in Kathmandu said people in northeastern Nepal strongly felt the earthquake but there were no immediate reports of injuries or damage to houses.
A police officer in Solukhumbu district, where Mount Everest is located, said by telephone that there were no reports of damage. The area, often crowded with climbers and hikers, was empty in the depth of winter. Many residents move to the south to avoid the harsh winter.
About 230 kilometers (140 miles) from the epicenter in Nepal's capital, Kathmandu, the earthquake woke up residents and sent them running out of their homes into the streets.
There have been 10 earthquakes of at least magnitude 6 in the area where Tuesday's quake hit over the past century, the USGS said.
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Associated Press writer Binaj Gurubacharya in Kathmandu, Nepal, and researcher Yu Bing in Beijing contributed to this report.
Ken Moritsugu, The Associated Press
Our Foreign Staff
Mon 6 January 2025
THE TELEGRAPH
Rescue workers are searching for survivors in Xigaze - Xinhua
A powerful earthquake has rocked the northern foothills of the Himalayas near one of Tibet’s holiest cities, killing at least 32 people and shaking buildings in neighbouring Nepal, Bhutan and India.
The quake hit on Tuesday morning, with its epicentre located in Tingri, a rural county known as the northern gateway to the Everest region, at a depth of 6.2 miles, according to the China Earthquake Networks Centre.
The impact of the quake was felt across the region of 800,000 people, which is administered by Shigatse, the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama, one of the most important figures in Tibetan Buddhism.
The US Geological Survey recorded the magnitude as 7.1, while China said it was 6.8.
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Villages in Tingri reported strong shaking during the quake, which was followed by numerous aftershocks with magnitudes of up to 4.4.
Crumbled shop fronts could be seen in a video on social media showing the aftermath from the nearby town of Lhatse, Reuters reported.
The quake has destroyed homes in Tibet - Xinhua
Local government officials were liaising with nearby towns to gauge the impact of the quake and check for casualties, China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency reported.
At least 38 people had been injured, Xinhua reported, citing the regional disaster relief headquarters.
Tremors were also felt in Nepal’s capital Kathmandu some 250 miles away, where residents ran from their houses.
“We felt a very strong earthquake. So far we have not received any report of injuries or physical loss,” said Anoj Raj Ghimire, chief district officer of Solukhumbu district in Nepal, at the foot of Mount Everest, the world’s highest mountain.
“We have mobilised police and other security forces as well as locals to collect information about the damage,” he added.
People in Kathmandu ran from their homes as buildings shook on Tuesday morning - Sunil Sharma
The quake also jolted Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan, and in the northern Indian state of Bihar which borders Nepal.
So far, no reports of any damage or loss to property have been received, officials in India said.
Southwestern parts of China, Nepal and Northern India are frequently hit by earthquakes caused by the collision of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates.
A huge quake in China’s Sichuan province in 2008 killed almost 70,000 people, while a magnitude 7.8 tremor struck near Kathmandu in 2015, killing about 9,000 people and injuring thousands in Nepal’s worst ever earthquake.
6.8 magnitude earthquake strikes near holy city in Tibet
LEAH SARNOFF and WILL GRETSKY
ABC
Mon 6 January 2025
A 6.8 magnitude earthquake reportedly killed at least nine people in Shigatse, Tibet, after striking near the country's holy city on Tuesday morning local time.
According to China Earthquake Networks Centre, the earthquake occurred in Dingri County, Shigatse City, Tibet, just after 9 a.m. with a focal depth of 10 kilometers.
Many houses collapsed near the epicenter, according to reports.
The Chinese media also reported that as of 10 a.m. local time, multiple aftershocks were recorded, the largest of which was 4.4.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Tibet earthquake: At least 53 dead as 7.1-magnitude quake felt in Nepal, Bhutan and India
Mon 6 January 2025
A 6.8 magnitude earthquake reportedly killed at least nine people in Shigatse, Tibet, after striking near the country's holy city on Tuesday morning local time.
According to China Earthquake Networks Centre, the earthquake occurred in Dingri County, Shigatse City, Tibet, just after 9 a.m. with a focal depth of 10 kilometers.
Many houses collapsed near the epicenter, according to reports.
The Chinese media also reported that as of 10 a.m. local time, multiple aftershocks were recorded, the largest of which was 4.4.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Tibet earthquake: At least 53 dead as 7.1-magnitude quake felt in Nepal, Bhutan and India
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar and Shweta Sharma
Mon 6 January 2025
AFP
Tibet earthquake: At least 53 dead as 7.1-magnitude quake felt in Nepal, Bhutan and India
The death toll from a powerful 7.1 magnitude earthquake in a mountainous Tibetan region that caused massive tremors in Nepal, Bhutan and India on Tuesday morning soared to 53.
The earthquake, which struck at 9.05am local time, was centred in Tibet’s Tingri County in Xigaze City at a depth of about 10km, the US Geological Survey reported. The epicenter was in the rural Chinese county known as the northern gateway to the Everest region. China’s earthquake centre had placed the magnitude at 6.8.
Nearly 62 others have been reported injured on the Tibetan side, China’s state-run news agency Xinhua reported.
Chinese president Xi Jinping said all-out search and rescue efforts should be carried out to minimise casualties, properly resettle the affected people, and ensure a safe and warm winter.
Nepalese people look on after rushing out of their homes after experiencing an earthquake in Kathmandu (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Videos showed crumbled shops in the aftermath from the nearby town of Lhatse, with debris spilling out onto the road.
"It shook quite strongly here, everyone is awake, but we don't know about any damages yet," government official Jagat Prasad Bhusal in Nepal's Namche region told AFP.
Mount Everest sightseeing tours in Tingri, where foreign climbers come to prepare for ascend, have been cancelled for Tuesday morning, according to a tourism staff member who spoke to local media. They also confirmed that the sightseeing area has been completely closed.
The tremors were felt in India, Bhutan and Bangladesh, forcing people to step out of their houses. So far, India, Nepal and Bhutan have reported no casualties from the earthquake.
Nepal’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) said the tremors were felt in seven hill districts bordering Tibet.
“So far we have not received any information of any loss of life and property,” NDRRMA spokesperson Dizan Bhattarai told Reuters. “We have mobilised police, security forces and local authorities to collect information,” he said.
"A reporter learned from the Tibet Autonomous Region earthquake bureau that people have been killed, involving three townships including Changsuo township, Quluo township, and Cuoguo township in Dingri County," Xinhua news agency reported. It added many buildings had collapsed in Tingri County following the quake.
Nepalese people stand after rushing out of their homes after experiencing an earthquake in Kathmandu (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Tremors were felt in Nepal's capital Kathmandu some 400km away from the epicenter, where residents ran from their houses.
“We felt a very strong earthquake. So far we have not received any report of injuries or physical loss,” said Anoj Raj Ghimire, chief district officer of Solukhumbu district in Nepal.
“We have mobilised police and other security forces as well as locals to collect information about the damage,” he told Reuters.
The epicenter was located where the Indian and Eurasian plates clashed and caused uplifts in the Himalayan mountains strong enough to change the heights of some of the world’s tallest peaks.
There are about a handful of communities within 5km of the epicentre, which is 380km from the Tibetan capital, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
There have been 29 earthquakes with magnitudes of 3 or higher within 200km of the Shigatse quake in the past five years, all of which were smaller than the one that struck on Tuesday morning.
In November 2023, a magnitude 5.6 earthquake shook northwestern Nepal, killing at least 138 people and injuring dozens.
In 2015, a magnitude 7.8 quake struck near Kathmandu in neighbouring Nepal, killing about 9,000 people and injuring thousands in that country's worst earthquake
A huge quake in Sichuan province in southwestern China in 2008 killed almost 70,000 people.
Quake in
Isabel KUA
Mon 6 January 2025
AFP
Map showing shake intensity in the region of Tibet and Nepal affected by a 6.8-magnitude earthquake on January 7. (AFP/AFP)
A devastating earthquake in China's remote Tibet region killed at least 53 people and collapsed "many buildings" on Tuesday, state media reported, with tremors also felt in neighbouring Nepal's capital Kathmandu and parts of India.
Videos published by China's state broadcaster CCTV showed houses destroyed with walls torn apart.
Rescue workers waded through rubble strewn across the ruins in the aftermath of the earthquake, footage showed, while some gave locals thick blankets to keep warm.
Surveillance images published by CCTV showed people running through a store's aisles as shelves shook violently, sending objects like toys tumbling to the ground.
In the town of Lhatse, videos geolocated by AFP showed debris scattered in front of streetside eateries.
The powerful quake struck Dingri county with a magnitude of 6.8 near the border with Nepal at 9:05 am (0105 GMT), according to the China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC). The US Geological Survey reported the tremor as magnitude 7.1.
"Fifty-three people have been confirmed dead and 62 injured as of Tuesday noon, after a 6.8-magnitude earthquake jolted Dingri County in the city of Xigaze in Xizang Autonomous Region at 9:05 am Tuesday," Xinhua news agency said.
Over 1,000 houses have sustained varying degrees of damage, it added.
"Dingri county and its surrounding areas experienced very strong tremors, and many buildings near the epicentre have collapsed," state broadcaster CCTV said.
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday emphasised "the full-scale search and rescue efforts, minimizing casualties to the greatest extent possible, properly resettling affected residents, and ensuring their safety and warmth through the winter", CCTV added.
Xinhua said that "local authorities are reaching out to various townships in the county to assess the impact of the quake".
Temperatures in Dingri are around minus 8 degrees Celsius (17.6 degrees Fahrenheit) and will drop to minus 18 this evening, according to the China Meteorological Administration.
Disaster relief aid, including cotton tents, quilts and items for high-altitude and frigid areas, had been dispatched by central authorities to areas impacted by the quake, Xinhua said.
The high-altitude county in the Tibet region is home to around 62,000 people and situated on the Chinese side of Mount Everest.
While earthquakes are common in the region, Tuesday's quake was the most powerful recorded within a 200-kilometre radius in the last five years, the CENC added.
- 'Shook quite strongly' -
As well as Kathmandu, areas around Lobuche in Nepal in the high mountains near Everest were also rattled by the tremor and aftershocks.
"It shook quite strongly here, everyone is awake," said government official Jagat Prasad Bhusal in Nepal's Namche region, which lies nearer to Everest.
But no damage or deaths had been reported so far and security forces had been deployed, Nepali Home Minister spokesman Rishi Ram Tiwari said.
Nepal lies on a major geological faultline where the Indian tectonic plate pushes up into the Eurasian plate, forming the Himalayas, and earthquakes are a regular occurrence.
In 2015, nearly 9,000 people died and more than 22,000 were injured when a 7.8-magnitude quake struck Nepal, destroying more than half a million homes.
Some tremors were felt in Bihar state in India but no injuries were reported.
Three people were killed and dozens injured after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck along the mountainous China-Kyrgyzstan border in January last year.
A quake in December 2023 in northwest China killed 148 people and displaced thousands in Gansu province.
That quake was China's deadliest since 2014, when more than 600 people were killed in southwestern Yunnan province.
In the December 2023 earthquake, subzero temperatures made the aid operation launched in response even more challenging, with survivors huddled around outdoor fires to keep warm.
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