UPDATE: Local Chinese media have reported at least 36 deaths in the areas surrounding Shigatse city in Tibet, with tremors also felt in neighboring Nepal and India. Videos captured scenes of damaged buildings and collapsed shop fronts in the major towns of Shigatse and Lhatse, with debris scattered across the roads.
A strong earthquake in China’s Tibet region on Tuesday resulted in the deaths of at least nine people and caused the collapse of numerous buildings, according to state media reports.
Chinese state media reported fatalities following an earthquake that struck a remote Himalayan region in Tibet on Tuesday, with tremors also felt in Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu.
According to the Xinhua news agency, information from the Tibet Autonomous Region earthquake bureau confirmed casualties in three townships—Changsuo, Quluo, and Cuoguo—in Dingri County.
Panicked man runs out of shaking Hotel Everest View as ‘over 100 million’ could have felt quake https://t.co/vfkgM6vnuB pic.twitter.com/K5iptJOd9h
— RT (@RT_com) January 7, 2025
The earthquake, measured at a magnitude of 6.8 by the China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC), occurred at 9:05 AM local time (0105 GMT) near the Nepal border. The US Geological Survey, however, recorded it as a 7.1-magnitude quake.
Some houses in Dingri were reported to have collapsed, Xinhua stated, citing local work teams. Authorities are currently assessing the damage across various townships in the county.
Dingri County, located in Tibet, is home to approximately 62,000 residents and lies on the Chinese side of Mount Everest.
Although earthquakes are frequent in the region, the CENC noted that Tuesday’s quake was the most powerful recorded within a 200-kilometer radius in the past five years.
(This is a Breaking News. More details are awaited.)
