More Than 500 Dead After Powerful Earthquake Rocks Southern China

At least 589 people are dead in southern China's Yunnan province after a U.S. Geological Survey reported magnitude 6.1 earthquake hit on Sunday.

By
Austin Hunt
by Austin Hunt

BuzzFeed News Reporter

Updated — Aug. 5, 11:48 p.m. ET:

A USGS reported magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck the southern Chinese province of Yunnan on Sunday, killing at least 589 people and injuring more than 2400, the Associated Press reported.

China Daily / Reuters

The earthquake struck at 4:30 p.m., local time, at a depth of 6.2 miles, according to the USGS. Reports out of China measured the earthquake to be of magnitude 6.5. A large earthquake hit the same Yunnan region in 2012, killing 81 people and injuring more than 800.

The earthquake caused 12,000 home to collapse and damaged up to 30,000 in Lodian, a densely populated county around 277 miles northeast of Yunnan's capital, Xinhua News Agency reports.

AP Photo/ Xinhua / Hu Chao
China Daily / Reuters
China Stringer Network / Reuters

Of the homes that collapsed in the county, many of them were made of brick and very old, reports the Associated Press. Xinhua also reported that electricity and telecommunications to the county were cut off, as a result of the earthquake.

A resident of the city of Zhaotong, Ma Liya, told Xinhua that the streets were like "battlefield after bombardment."

China Daily / Reuters

Disaster relief efforts are underway, with the Yunnan branch of the Red Cross Society of China, along with various other branches, sending quilts, jackets, blankets, and tents to the area to help the victims.

The city of Zhaotong has dispatched more than 300 police and firefighters, along with the province sending close to 400 rescue workers and multiple dogs to help the search and rescue efforts, reports Xinhua.

This is a developing story. Check back later and follow @BuzzFeedNews for more updates.

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