Death toll in China earthquake rises to 127
Dec 19, 2023
Beijing [China], December 20 : As many as 127 people have been killed and hundreds injured after an overnight earthquake struck north-western China. The earthquake was the most deadly the country has experienced in the past nine years, Al Jazeera reported.
Authorities quickly mobilised several emergency responses, but their work has been complicated as the earthquake wrecked roads and infrastructure, triggered landslides, and partly buried a village in silt.
Recuse work became difficult due to subzero temperatures, with most of China grappling with below-freezing conditions after a powerful cold wave swept across the country.
On Tuesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping called for "all-out efforts" in search and relief operations. Nearly 1,500 firefighters were deployed, with another 1,500 on standby, according to state media. More than 300 officers and soldiers were also mobilised for disaster relief.
China's state planner said it has allocated 250 million yuan (USD 35m) to assist Gansu and Qinghai provinces.
The earthquake had a magnitude of 6.2, according to state news agency Xinhua. It struck at 23:59 pm (15:59 GMT) on Monday in Gansu province, near the border with Qinghai, causing significant damage, state media reported.
As per Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, 113 people were confirmed dead in Gansu, with an additional 536 injured. In Qinghai, CCTV reported that 14 people were killed and 198 others injured. The death toll is the highest recorded in China since 2014, when an earthquake killed 617 people and devastated southwest China's Yunnan province.
Gansu provincial authorities previously stated that more than 4,700 houses had been damaged. Power and water supplies were also disrupted in some villages, Xinhua reported.
State television footage showed emergency vehicles driving along snow-lined highways, and rescue workers pictured shoulder-to-shoulder in the trucks, as per Al Jazeera.
