Strong earthquake in Tibet, near Nepal, kills at least 53 people
A 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck the northern foothills of the Himalayas near one of Tibet's holiest cities on January 7, Chinese authorities confirmed, killing at least 53 people and shaking buildings in neighboring Nepal, Bhutan and India.
The earthquake struck at 9:05 a.m. (8:05 a.m. ET) on January 7, with its epicenter in Tingri, a rural county in China known as the northern gateway to the Everest region, at a depth of 10 kilometers, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center. The U.S. Geological Survey put the magnitude of the quake at 7.1.
At least 53 people were killed and 62 injured on the Tibetan side, China's state news agency reported.
The southwestern regions of China, Nepal and northern India are prone to earthquakes due to the collision of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates.
A 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck near Kathmandu in 2015, killing about 9,000 people and injuring thousands in Nepal’s worst ever earthquake. Among those killed were at least 18 people at Mount Everest base camp when it was destroyed by an avalanche.
The epicenter of the January 7 earthquake was about 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of Mount Everest, the world's highest mountain and a popular destination for climbers and hikers.
Winter is not a popular season for climbers and hikers in Nepal, with a German climber the only climber with a permit to climb Mount Everest. He left base camp after failing to reach the summit, said Lilathar Awasthi, an official with the Ministry of Tourism.
The earthquakes were felt in seven hilly districts bordering Tibet, Nepal's National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) said. "So far, we have not received any information about loss of life or damage to property," NDRRMA spokesman Dizan Bhattarai told Reuters. "We have mobilized police, security forces and local administration to collect information," he said.
The earthquake's impact was felt across the Shigatse region of Tibet, home to 800,000 people. The region is administered by the city of Shigatse, the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama, one of the most important figures in Tibetan Buddhism.
Chinese President Xi Jinping said all-out search and rescue efforts must be carried out to minimize casualties, properly resettle those affected and ensure a warm and safe winter.
Villages in Tingri reported strong shaking during the earthquake, followed by dozens of aftershocks with magnitudes as high as 4.4.
There are three towns and 27 villages within 20 kilometers of the epicenter, with a total population of about 6,900, Xinhua reported. Local government officials are contacting neighboring towns to assess the impact of the quake and check for casualties. Aftershocks were also felt in Nepal's capital Kathmandu, about 400 kilometers away, where people fled their homes.
The earthquake also shook Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan, and the northern Indian state of Bihar, which borders Nepal.
So far, there have been no reports of damage or loss of property, officials in India said./.