People doing relief work for earthquake victims in Ushturfan County, Aksu District, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China (23rd) (Xinhua News Agency/Kyodo News)
[Beijing Kyodo]A magnitude 7.1 earthquake occurred at around 2:09 a.m. (3:09 Japan time) on the 23rd in Ushturfan County, Aksu District, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China. The depth of the epicenter was 22 km. This was announced by the China Earthquake Administration. State-run Central Television reported that three people were injured in the Aksu region and the neighboring Kyrgyzstan region. A house had collapsed and a trapped child was rescued.
According to state news agency Xinhua, houses were also destroyed and power outages were caused in Uxturfan province. Residents evacuated to gymnasiums and other locations.
Ushturfan region is located near the border with Kyrgyzstan. It is located at a high altitude of 3,000 meters above sea level, and the temperature is said to be extremely cold, around 10 degrees below zero. CCTV showed footage of rescue teams rushing from the district capital Urumqi to the Aksu district.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the magnitude of the earthquake was M7.0. M5-level tremors, believed to be aftershocks, continued.
Xinhua news agency reported that residents in Uxturfan province said that the shaking continued for about a minute, causing lights to fall from the ceiling. Strong shaking was felt across a wide area, including the autonomous regions of Kashgar and Hotan.