At least 50 people have been killed and 20,000 homes damaged by a series of earthquakes, one measuring 5.7 in magnitude, in southwestern China, local authorities and state media say. The US Geological Survey registered the two strongest of the series of quakes at 5.6 magnitude.
The first quake took place at the border area of Yiliang County in Yunnan and Weining County in Guizhou, Xinhua said. State broadcaster CCTV said at least six people were killed in the disaster, all of them in Yunnan.
Footage showed a couple hundred people crowding into what looked like a school athletic field in Yiliang's county seat, a sizeable city spread along a river in a valley bottom. "I was walking on the street when I suddenly felt the ground shaking beneath me.
People started rushing outside screaming, it still scares me to think of it now," posted one on Sina Weibo, a microblogging service similar to Twitter. Mobile and regular phone service in the area was experiencing disruption, according to reports.
The news agency cited unidentified "government sources" for the initial death toll and damage. An official reached by telephone in Guizhou told AFP no casualties had been reported in the province. Though quakes in the area occur frequently, buildings in rural areas and China's fast-growing smaller cities and towns are often constructed poorly.
Local officials said teams had been sent to distribute tents and blankets to those affected. Local officials said teams had been sent to distribute tents and blankets to those affected. The southwestern region of China is prone to earthquakes. In May 2008, a magnitude 7.9 quake in the province of Sichuan caused widespread devastation, killing at least 69,000 people.
The first quake took place at the border area of Yiliang County in Yunnan and Weining County in Guizhou, Xinhua said. State broadcaster CCTV said at least six people were killed in the disaster, all of them in Yunnan.
Footage showed a couple hundred people crowding into what looked like a school athletic field in Yiliang's county seat, a sizeable city spread along a river in a valley bottom. "I was walking on the street when I suddenly felt the ground shaking beneath me.
People started rushing outside screaming, it still scares me to think of it now," posted one on Sina Weibo, a microblogging service similar to Twitter. Mobile and regular phone service in the area was experiencing disruption, according to reports.
The news agency cited unidentified "government sources" for the initial death toll and damage. An official reached by telephone in Guizhou told AFP no casualties had been reported in the province. Though quakes in the area occur frequently, buildings in rural areas and China's fast-growing smaller cities and towns are often constructed poorly.
Local officials said teams had been sent to distribute tents and blankets to those affected. Local officials said teams had been sent to distribute tents and blankets to those affected. The southwestern region of China is prone to earthquakes. In May 2008, a magnitude 7.9 quake in the province of Sichuan caused widespread devastation, killing at least 69,000 people.
