At Least 116 Dead After 6.2 Magnitude Earthquake Hits Northwestern China

Rescue workers search a house for survivors after an earthquake in Kangdiao village, Dahejia, Jishishan County, in northwest China's Gansu province

KEY FACTS

The earthquake's epicenter was near Jishishan county in the northwestern Gansu province, at a relatively shallow depth of 6.2 miles (10 kilometers), Chinese authorities said Tuesday morning.

    The U.S. Geological Survey measured the quake at a 5.9 magnitude and referred     to the area as “tectonically active.”

More than 500 people were injured and the quake caused severe damage to houses, roads and power lines in the remote region, the Associated Press reported, citing Chinese media.

More than 3,000 rescue personnel have been dispatched to Gansu and the neighboring Qinghai province, according to local media.

China’s President Xi Jinping asked the State Council—the country’s top administrative body—to send a working group to the affected area, and ordered the country’s military and armed police to help carry out rescue operations.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR

The number of reported casualties from the quake could grow as rescuers and survivors face freezing temperatures and mountainous terrain. Rescuers usually have a 72-hour window to rescue people trapped under rubble following an earthquake, with chances of finding survivors dropping sharply after that. But the extreme weather conditions are likely to shorten that window significantly, Reuters reported, citing a local expert.

BIG NUMBER

$1 billion to $10 billion. According to a USGS assessment, that is the most likely estimate for economic loss caused by the earthquake, adding it is a “red alert for economic losses.” The agency notes that “extensive damage” from the quake “is probable and the disaster is likely widespread.”

SECTION TITLE

The China Earthquake Administration said nine aftershocks at a magnitude of 3.0 and above were recorded as of early Tuesday morning—including two above magnitude 4.0.