Tibet earthquake death toll rises to 126, nearly 200 injured| 10 points

The death toll due to the 6.8 magnitude earthquake near Tibet on Tuesday, mounted to 126, AFP quoted Chinese agency Xinhua. Nearly 200 people were injured as the quake damaged several houses, littering streets with rubble.

More than 1,000 homes were damaged in the barren and sparsely populated region, AP quoted Chinese broadcaster CCTV. In a video posted by the broadcaster, building debris littered streets and crushed cars.

Here are the top 10 updates on the earthquake that rocked Tibet, with tremors felt in Nepal and parts of India:-

1. An earthquake of 4.3 magnitude jolted Tibet on Tuesday evening, the National Centre of Seismology (NCS) reported. The earthquake hit the region at 5:52 pm (IST), the NCS noted. As per the National Centre of Seismology, the earthquake occurred at a depth of 16 kilometres.

2. According to an AP report, Chinese president Xi Jinping, called for all-out efforts to rescue people, minimize casualties and resettle those whose homes were damaged. More than 3,000 rescuers were deployed, CCTV said.

Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing was dispatched to the area to guide the work, and the government announced the allocation of 100 million yuan ($13.6 million) for disaster relief. China refers to Tibet as Xizang, part of the Himalayan region.

3. Rescue workers climbed mounds of broken bricks, some using ladders in heavily damaged villages, as they searched for survivors. According to an AP report, videos posted by China’s Ministry of Emergency Management showed two people being carried on stretchers by workers treading over the debris from collapsed homes.

4. Tibet is a seismically active zone. It logged more than 100 earthquakes of magnitude of at least 3.0 last year. But quakes of magnitude 7.0 and above are rare, with just nine since the turn of the 20th century, Reuters reported.

5. Some 22,000 disaster relief items, including cotton tents, cotton coats, quilts and folding beds, together with special relief materials for high-altitude and frigid areas, have been dispatched by central authorities to the quake-hit area, PTI reported. Over 1,500 local firefighters and rescue workers have also been dispatched to the ground.

6. In Nepal, the strong earthquake forced people to run out of their houses. It was felt in Kavrepalanchwok, Sindhupalanchok Dhading and Solukhumbu districts as well. According to a PTI report, several people came out of their houses due to panic in Kathmandu. People witnessed buildings, trees and electric wires on the streets shaking for some time.

7. About 150 aftershocks were recorded in the nine hours after the earthquake, and the Mount Everest scenic area on the Chinese side was closed, AP reported.

8. On the southwest edge of Kathmandu, a video showed water spilling out into the street from a pond in a courtyard with a small temple. “It is a big earthquake,” AP quoted a woman as saying,”People are all shaking.”

9. About 6,900 people live in three townships and 27 villages within 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) of the epicenter on the Chinese side, state media said. The average altitude in the area is about 4,200 meters (13,800 feet), the Chinese earthquake center said.

10. According to a Reuters report, the quake’s impact was felt across the Shigatse region of Tibet, home to 800,000 people. The region is administered by Shigatse city, the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama, one of the most important figures in Tibetan Buddhism. Many homes in Shigatse city were reduced to rubble, video released by Tibet Fire and Rescue showed.