A magnitude 7.0 earthquake in Tibet has killed at least 16 people, injured 32 others and caused more than 300 homes to collapse, according to Chinese officials.
The earthquake struck at 10.33pm local time on Thursday in a sparsely populated, high-altitude area of northern Tibet, the United States Geological Survey said.
Its epicentre was located 119 miles east-north-east of Nagqu, a city more than 186 miles north of Tibet’s capital, Lhasa.
The USGS estimated the earthquake’s depth at 11 miles, while China’s Earthquake Networks Centre put it at 6.2 miles. China’s state broadcaster CCTV described it as the biggest earthquake in the region for five years.
Reports from the Chinese state news agency Xinhua, citing local officials, said at least 16 people had died and 32 had been wounded. More than 300 homes were reported to have collapsed.
The earthquake struck less than two months after devastating flash floods hit a border region of Nepal and Tibet, leaving hundreds dead and destroying several communities. Authorities said those floods were caused by the collapse of a glacier.
