Magnitude 7 earthquake in Tibet kills 16 as rescue work continues

At least 16 people have been killed and 32 others injured after a magnitude 7 earthquake struck China's Tibet region on Thursday night, according to state media citing local authorities. The quake hit around 10:33 p.m. local time near Nagqu, in a mountainous area of northern Tibet, and emergency response work is continuing. Officials said the tremor caused significant damage in nearby communities, with rescue teams still assessing the full impact.

Sponsored

State media reported that 11 of the injured were in serious condition, while 21 had minor injuries. At least 339 homes collapsed, according to the Nagqu media office, which cited city government officials. Authorities activated a level-II earthquake disaster emergency response soon after the quake, and police and emergency crews were building tents to shelter people displaced by the disaster.

The US Geological Survey said the epicentre was about 190 kilometres east-northeast of Nagqu and roughly 390 kilometres northeast of Lhasa. The quake is the strongest to hit China since January 2024, according to the reports. Its shallow depth of about 10 kilometres and the high-altitude terrain around the epicentre increased the likelihood of strong surface shaking and damage to homes.

Videos released by local official media showed residents leaving their houses and gathering outside or in parked cars as the tremor shook the area. Smaller aftershocks, including tremors of around magnitude 3 and 4, were recorded afterwards in surrounding regions. The disaster matters because Tibet is a seismically active region where strong earthquakes can have severe consequences in remote communities.

The affected area is sparsely populated, but the combination of collapsed homes, injured residents and disrupted local services points to a broad local impact. The response also highlights the difficulty of reaching mountain settlements quickly after a major quake, especially when roads, communications and other infrastructure may be affected. The latest figures are a sharp increase from earlier reports that had only confirmed injuries and structural damage.

Local authorities had already said that some houses near the epicentre showed cracks, and that at least two injured people were found in a village close to the quake zone. The emergency response was launched while teams continued to check villages around the epicentre for casualties and damage. That suggests the situation remained fluid as officials worked to establish the scale of the disaster.

The earthquake has also revived attention on Tibet's vulnerability to major seismic events. In January 2025, at least 126 people were killed in an earthquake in Tibet's rural Tingri county, underscoring the risks faced by communities in high-altitude and hard-to-reach areas. A much deadlier magnitude 7.1 quake struck Yushu in Qinghai province in 2010, killing at least 2,698 people and leaving nearly 300 missing.

Those earlier disasters showed how quickly a strong tremor can overwhelm local rescue capacity in western China. For now, the full extent of damage in outlying villages remains unclear, and officials have not yet given a final count of destroyed buildings or detailed information on roads and communications. The number of casualties could still change as rescue teams reach more remote locations and complete assessments.

The next developments to watch are further official casualty updates, the pace of rescue work and whether additional emergency measures are needed in Nagqu and surrounding areas.

At least 16 people have been killed and 32 others injured after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck China's remote Tibet region, according to state media citing local authorities. The quake hit on Thursday night in Baqen county, with the epicentre in Maru township, in a mountainous area far from the regional capital. Officials said more than 300 houses collapsed and that emergency response work was under way.

The earthquake struck at 10:33pm local time, or 1433 GMT, and was felt strongly at the township office in Maru, where cracks appeared in the walls, according to local officials quoted by state media. Power and telecoms services were disrupted in the county seat, adding to the difficulty of assessing the full impact. Authorities activated a level-II earthquake disaster emergency response as rescue and damage assessment teams continued their work.

The latest figures mark a significant rise from earlier reports that had only confirmed injuries and structural damage. The quake's epicentre was placed about 190 kilometres east-northeast of Nagqu and 390 kilometres northeast of Lhasa by the US Geological Survey. The remote location, combined with damaged infrastructure, means officials are still evaluating conditions in affected communities and the number of casualties could change.

The disaster is significant because Tibet is a seismically active region where strong earthquakes can have severe consequences in sparsely populated but hard-to-reach areas. In this case, the collapse of hundreds of homes and the disruption of utilities point to a broad local impact even before the full scale of damage is known. The emergency response also reflects the challenge of reaching mountain settlements quickly after a major tremor.

The incident comes less than two years after a deadly earthquake in Tibet's rural Tingri county in January 2025, when at least 126 people were killed. That earlier disaster underlined the vulnerability of remote Tibetan communities to strong seismic events and the difficulty of rescue operations in high-altitude terrain. The current quake has again drawn attention to the risks facing towns and villages spread across western China's mountainous border regions.

What remains unclear is the full extent of damage in outlying villages and whether more casualties will be confirmed as assessments continue. Officials have not yet given a final count of destroyed buildings or detailed information on the condition of roads, communications and other services. The next developments to watch are further casualty updates, the pace of rescue work and whether additional emergency measures are needed in Baqen county and surrounding areas.

A shallow 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Tibet on Thursday, prompting an emergency rescue response from Chinese authorities. The quake hit near Nagqu at a depth of 10 kilometres, according to the supplied reports. Early accounts said people rushed out of buildings as the tremor shook the area.

The epicentre was recorded at 32.40 degrees north latitude and 93.79 degrees east longitude. The China Earthquake Administration activated a Level-II emergency response soon after the quake. The Nagqu Battalion of the Lhasa Fire and Rescue Mobile Detachment sent an advance team of seven firefighters, equipped with life-detection devices and specialist rescue gear, towards the affected area.

Officials said at least two people were injured in a village near the epicentre. Cracks were also reported in several homes in nearby communities, indicating damage in settlements close to the quake zone. Local authorities said casualties had been reported, but they did not immediately give a confirmed death toll.

The response reflects the seriousness of a strong, shallow earthquake in a remote part of western China. Shallow quakes can cause more intense shaking at the surface than deeper ones, increasing the risk of damage to homes and infrastructure. In this case, the immediate focus has been on checking villages around the epicentre for injuries, structural damage and any further casualties.

Tibet is a seismically active region, and emergency teams were sent quickly to assess conditions and carry out rescue operations. The deployment of firefighters with detection equipment suggests authorities were preparing for possible people trapped in damaged buildings. The reports also show that the response was still in its early stages, with officials continuing to gather information from the field.

What remains unclear is the full scale of the damage and whether the reported casualties will rise as more villages are checked. Authorities have not yet provided a confirmed death toll, and the number of injured people may change as rescue teams reach more remote locations. The next developments to watch are official casualty updates, damage assessments and any further emergency measures ordered in the area.

#Tibetearthquake #Nagqu #China #earthquakecasualties #rescueoperation