BEIJING: A string of five earthquakes — including one with a magnitude of 6.0 — shook China’s southwestern Sichuan province on Monday, injuring at least four people and toppling a hotel.
Rescuers were rushing to affected areas in heavy rain near the epicenter of the largest quake, which was located outside the city of Yibin, state news agency Xinhua reported.
That quake occurred at about 10:55 pm (10:55pm Malaysian Time) at a depth of 16 km, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.
The subsequent smaller tremors, the largest of which had a magnitude of 5.1, took place in the following 40 minutes.
At least four people were rescued and taken to hospital for treatment, Xinhua quoted an emergency worker as saying.
A hotel close to the epicenter collapsed, but it was not immediately clear if there were any casualties from that incident, the agency said.
Cracks appeared in a major highway in the area.
Videos circulating on social media showed chandeliers and other light fixtures swaying from the shaking.
AFP was unable to independently verify the authenticity of the videos.
Earthquakes regularly strike Sichuan, where a powerful 7.9-magnitude quake left 87,000 people dead or missing in 2008.
In February, three earthquakes hit Rongxian county in the province, killing two people and injuring 12 others — casualties that residents blamed on fracking.
Local authorities later halted shale gas mining after thousands of residents protested. — AFP
