Quake in Tibet of 6.8 intensity
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25/08/2008
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Asian Age (New Delhi)
Beijing,
A strong earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale on Monday shook the mountainous Zhongba County in Xigaze prefecture, close to India in southern Tibet and there are no immediate report of casualties.
The quake hit the region at 9:22 p.m. (6:52 p.m. IST), according to a National Earthquake Network press release. The epicentre was about 10 km underground at 31.0 degrees north latitude and 83.6 degrees east longitude, Xinhua news agency reported.
The area, at an average altitude of 5,500 metres, is sparsely populated. No casualties have been report ed so far, it said. Earlier, the death toll in the strong earthquake that jolted southwest China's Yunnan Province last week has risen to five, the local government said on Monday.
One person in Yingjiang County who died from heart attack while being evacuated and another died of serious injuries in hospital, the Yunnan civil affairs department said, giving no other details.
Yingjiang was hit by a magnitude-5 tremor on Wednesday, followed by quakes with magnitudes 4.9 and 5.9 on Thursday.
29 people were seriously injured and 98 slightly hurt.