Powerful earthquake hits Tibet killing 16 people, reports say

A magnitude 7.0 earthquake has hit a mountainous region in Tibet, killing at least 16 people and injuring dozens, according to Chinese state media.

The centre of the quake hit Baqên County in the Nagqu region on Thursday night, Xinhua reported, citing the local emergency management bureau.

The county - located in what China calls the Tibet Autonomous Region after annexing it in the 1950s - is 400km (250 miles) north-east of the region's capital, Lhasa.

Authorities have declared the incident an emergency and deployed rescue teams to the affected area, where 65 others have been injured, including 11 people with severe injuries.

The electricity supply has been cut off and 339 homes have collapsed in the affected region, though by Friday morning there were reports of power restored in some areas.

Local media said more than 12,400 people had been relocated following the earthquake.

Rockfall has forced roads in the region to close, making it more difficult for crews to reach impacted high-altitude areas.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) has recorded seven tremors close to the epicentre, all of which are located in the mountainous region. The largest tremor was recorded at 5.2 magnitude at a depth of 10km.

Shallow earthquakes and tremors closer to the Earth's surface are more damaging than deep quakes.

Several survivors of the earthquake have told local media about their harrowing escape.

Nagqu resident Yixi Cuomu told Tibet Daily that she was asleep in her bed when her house started shaking violently. Realising it was an earthquake, she headed outside barefoot, her "legs trembling uncontrollably" as she descended the staircase in her home.

Another eyewitness said the shaking was so violent "that in that moment I felt as if several hundred yaks were running past us".

Residents chose to spend the night outdoors in subzero temperatures, seeking shelter in tents or their cars, as they feared aftershocks could trap them in their homes, according to the news outlet.

Chinese state media reported on Friday morning that more than 400 aftershocks had been registered since the quake occurred.

China's Premier Li Qiang has called for "urgent efforts" to organise rescue operations and medical treatment for the injured, and relocate and resettle affected residents appropriately, according to state media.

Li noted that the earthquake-hit area is at a high altitude, around 4,800m (15,750ft), and prone to aftershocks.

The Ministry of Emergency Management has dispatched a working group to the affected area to guide rescue and disaster relief operations.

Separately, the Chinese government announced it was allocating 50 million yuan (£5.6m; $7.5m) for disaster relief efforts in Tibet.

Videos on social media of the moment the quake struck show villagers running into the streets as buildings shake violently in the dark. These have not been independently verified.

The region is prone to devastating seismic activity.

In 2023, a 6.2 magnitude quake killed more than 120 people in the nearby mountainous Gansu province of China.

Tibet and Nepal were also recently devastated by massive floods and landslides less than two months ago, unleashed by a glacier collapse, which killed at least 1,400 people. Hundreds of others are still reported missing.

Despite the region presenting some of the most challenging rescue conditions, rescue teams on the Tibetan plateau are highly experienced and have shown an ability to mobilise quickly.

In January 2025, military personnel, firefighters, police and specialist rescue teams were in the area within hours after a powerful eartquake struck the Shigatse region of Tibet.

The Chinese military also have drones to help survey the area.

Tibet, which has long demanded greater autonomy, is one of the most tightly controlled regions in China.

With foreign media restricted from the region and information heavily censored by authorities, Chinese state media is the main source for updates and details when such disasters happen.

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