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09-01-2025
LHASA: Rescuers searched into the night for survivors after a major earthquake killed at least 126 people and damaged more than 3,000 buildings in a remote part of the Chinese region of Tibet, near Everest.
Another 188 people were injured after the earthquake hit the foothills of the Himalayas at around 09:00 local time (01:00 GMT) on Tuesday, according to Chinese state media.
A large-scale rescue operation was launched, with survivors under additional pressure as temperatures were predicted to fall as low as -16C overnight.
Earthquakes are common in the region, which lies on a major geological fault line, but Tuesday’s was one of China’s deadliest in recent years.
The magnitude 7.1 quake, which struck at a depth of 10 km (six miles), according to data from the US Geological Survey, was also felt in Nepal and parts of India, which neighbor Tibet.
Videos published by China’s state broadcaster CCTV showed destroyed houses and brought down buildings in Tibet’s holy Shigatse city, with rescue workers wading through debris and handing out thick blankets to locals.
Temperatures in Tingri County, near the earthquake’s epicentre in the northern foothills of the Himalayas, were already as low as -8C before night fell, according to the China Meteorological Administration.
Sangji Dangzhi whose supermarket was damaged in the earthquake said the destruction of homes had been extensive.
“Here the houses are made from dirt so when the earthquake came… lots of houses collapsed,” the 34-year-old told media by phone, adding that ambulances had been taking people to hospital throughout the day.
State media said that, as of 19:00 local time, some 3,609 buildings had collapsed – potentially leaving thousands of people without shelter.
A hotel resident in Shigatse told Chinese media outlet Fengmian News he had been jolted awake by a wave of shaking. He said he had grabbed his socks and rushed out on to the street, where he saw helicopters circling above.
“It felt like even the bed was being lifted,” he said, adding that he immediately knew it was an earthquake because Tibet recently experienced multiple smaller quakes.
Both power and water in the region which cannot be freely travelled to by journalists have been disrupted. There were more than 40 aftershocks in the first few hours following the quake.
Chinese state media reported the earthquake as having a slightly lesser magnitude of 6.8, causing “obvious” tremors.
Jiang Haikun, a researcher at the China Earthquake Networks Center, told CCTV that while another earthquake of around magnitude 5 might still occur, “the likelihood of a larger earthquake is low”.
Sitting at the foot of Mount Everest, which separates Nepal and China, Tingri County is a popular base for climbers preparing to ascend the world’s tallest peak.
Everest sightseeing tours in the area, originally scheduled for Tuesday morning, have been cancelled, a tourism staff member told local media, adding that the sightseeing area had been fully closed.
There were three visitors in the sightseeing area who had all been moved to an outdoor area for safety, they said. Shigatse region, home to 800,000 people, is the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama, a key figure of Tibetan Buddhism whose spiritual authority is second only to the Dalai Lama.
The exiled spiritual leader said he had been deeply saddened by news of the quake. (Int’l Monitoring Desk)
