BEIJING
An earthquake in China’s southwestern Yunnan province killed one person and displaced tens of thousands when it struck Tuesday night, according to state news agency Xinhua.
Another 324 were injured when the 6.6 magnitude earthquake struck Jinggu County, the epicenter of the quake.
A hotel owner in Yongping town said Wednesday that local text messages indicated at least five residents had been killed but could not confirm the figures himself, the South China Morning Post reported.
The owner, who gave his surname as Jiang, said: "We spent the night on the town square, sleeping in tents provided by the government. The aftershocks just kept coming. All the shops in town are closed today."
A worker named as Yang told the newspaper: "The tremors were very strong. The whole building was shaking. The plaster on the wall fell off and the water pipes on the top floor were all broken."
She added: "Many people slept in the parks or by the lakefront last night."
The earthquake hit at 21.49 local time (13.49 GMT), affecting 92,700 people, of which 56,880 were relocated, according to local officials reported by Xinhua.
Tremors were felt across the 394,000 square kilometer province, which has a population of 45.7 million.
The agency said authorities in Yunnan initiated an emergency response following the 5km deep quake, dispatching supplies and more than 3,200 troops and 600 emergency workers, as well as 13 sniffer dogs, to the area.
The remote mountainous region, bordering Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam, is prone to earthquakes.
In August a 6.5 magnitude earthquake struck Ludian, Yunnan, killing at least 615. A 7.7 magnitude earthquake rocked the province in 1970 killing at least 15,000.
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