Over 50,000 people have been relocated to safer locations after severe damage to buildings owing to a powerful 6.8-magnitude earthquake that hit Luding County in China with tremors felt as far away as the provinces of Shaanxi and Guizhou.
The death toll from the strongest quake to hit China’s southwestern Sichuan province since 2017 rose to 65 on Tuesday.
Nearly 250 people were being treated for injuries from the disaster, with dozens critically wounded, Reuters reported.
Over 240 houses had collapsed and 13,010 had been damaged in the devastating earthquake. Hotels and hundreds of home stays were also affected, a Reuters report said.
China has activated the highest level of emergency response for the earthquake deploying over 6,500 rescuers, four helicopters and two unmanned aerial vehicles in the area.
Power cuts hit several towns in the province, while many major highways collapsed.