No casualties reported from Tibet quake

LHASA - No casualties have been reported from Tibet after it was hit by an earthquake Monday morning, although houses were toppled and roads damaged, according to local government.

At 5:23 am (Beijing Time), a 6.1-magnitude quake jolted the border region of Zogang county and Markam county in Qamdo prefecture, some 1,000 km southeast of Lhasa, the capital of Tibet autonomous region.

"We felt strong tremors in the county seat when the quake took place, and damage has been seen to houses and roads, but I have received no immediate report of casualties," Zhang Hongjun, Party chief of Zogang, told Xinhua via phone.

However, Zhang is worried for the villagers in Ringo, a mountainous town with a population of 3,476, which is right on the epicenter, and is about 75 km away from the county seat of Zogang.

"It will take us more time to figure out the situation there, as eight of the 12 villages in Ringo are not accessible by telecommunication or highway, so the rescuers have to go there on foot," said the Party chief.

The quake was also felt in the neighboring Tibetan autonomous prefecture of Deqen and Yunnan province, and local government is investigating consequent damage.

Aftershocks have kept striking the quake-hit area, with the strongest measuring 5.1 magnitude, and another rescue team sent by the government of Qamdo prefecture is on its way to the affected areas.

Just three weeks ago, a 6.6-magnitude quake jolted Minxian and Zhangxian counties in the northwestern province of Gansu, killing at least 95 people.