(TibetanReview.net, Oct31’25) – The true scales of the death and destruction caused by the devastating 6.8-manitude earthquake which hit Tibet’s Mt Everest county of Dingri on Jan 7 remains unknown due to China’s denial of access and tight control on information. However, figures reported by China’s official media as it reported on the completion of the post-earthquake housing reconstruction provides a measure of the scale of the disaster.
By the end of October, more than 22,000 newly built houses and over 10,500 repaired and reinforced homes have been fully completed and handed over to residents in the earthquake-affected areas of Dingri county, Shigatse city, and surrounding regions, reported China’s official chinadaily.com.cn Oct 31, citing local authorities.
The report continued that the reconstruction effort has covered seven counties, 47 towns, and 486 villages.
It said more than 6,600 Party members and officials were stationed at construction sites to coordinate progress and resolve challenges. The reconstruction was stated to have involved 134 enterprises, over 2,600 management personnel, 61,000 construction workers, and around 6,000 pieces of machinery.
The first batch of quake-affected residents were sated to have been moved into new homes in August.
As regards the number of those who died in the earthquake, China has stuck to the figure of 126, the final count on the first day of the disaster. This official death toll appeared to be based on the search operations carried out in 27 villages comprising 6,900 people within the 20 km (12 miles) radius of the earthquake epicentre, the focus of China’s state media at that time.
However, unofficial death toll reported by independent researches ranged between 134 in 17 villages reported by VOA Tibetan service on Jan 13, 2025 and more than 400 reported by the Tibetan service of rfa.org Jan 13, 2025, based on estimate of morgue staff in Dingri and Lhatse counties alone.
China reported further searches in wider areas from the earthquake’s epicentre much later but never revised the death toll.
China also reported on the earthquake’s effect on infrastructure like dams belatedly. China Central Television on Jan 15 reported that five dams in the epicentre zone showed “cracks and other issues”, noted Washington-based International Campaign for Tibet in a Jan 24 report.
Chinese authorities spoke of having emptied three of the affected reservoirs and relocated at least 1,500 people from villages downstream of the river to mitigate potential risks, the group added.