(TibetanReview.net, Jan26’27) – More than 20,000 people in a county in a Tibetan prefecture in Gansu province have been evacuated following a 5.5-magnitude earthquake which jolted it in the afternoon of Jan 26, said China’s official media reports Jan 25-26.
No casualties were reported in the affected areas of Thewo (Chinese: Tewo or Diebu) County in Kanlho (Gannan) prefecture after the first round of comprehensive inspections, while cracks have been observed in some buildings, China’s official Xinhua news agency Jan 26 cited local authorities as saying.
According to Oslo-based Voice of Tibet broadcast service (vot.org) Jan 27, 49 Tibetan Villages in Thewo County suffered damages.
The Xinhua report cited multiple residents of the county as saying the quake, which occurred at 2:56pm, was felt strongly, prompting people to rush to public squares for safety.
The office of the State Council earthquake relief headquarters, the Ministry of Emergency Management and the China Earthquake Administration, was stated to have activated Level IV emergency responses to the earthquake.
Public security authorities were stated to have dispatched 350 officers to conduct search and rescue operations, with a total of 340 personnel, 65 vehicles and seven search dogs having reportedly been mobilized by the Gansu provincial fire and rescue corps to affected areas.
The epicentre was stated to have been monitored at 34.06 degrees north latitude and 103.25 degrees east longitude, with the quake having struck at a depth of 10 km.