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China earthquake

April 20, 2013

A powerful earthquake has struck China's Sichuan province. At least 100 people have been reported dead, but local authorities say that toll could rise.

https://p.dw.com/p/18Jkf
An aerial view shows houses damaged after a strong earthquake in Lushan county, Ya'an, Sichuan province (Photo: REUTERS/China Daily)
Image: Reuters

The quake hit shortly after 8 am local time (000 GMT) in Lushan county in the city of Ya'an in the southwest of China. The city is famous for its pandas.

The Chinese government's seismological bureau measured the quake at magnitude 7. The US Geological Survey recorded it at 6.6 at a depth of less than 13 kilometers. This could magnify the impact.

Multiple aftershocks followed: The largest was marked at 5.1, five minutes after the first quake.

The Xinhua News Agency said that the quake rattled buildings in the provincial capital of Chengdu, 115 kilometers (70 miles) to the east.

The epicenter lies along the same Longmenshan fault where a 7.9 magnitude quake struck in May 2008, killing nearly 70,000 people.

jm/jr (AP, Reuters)