Earthquake kills 3 in Yunnan

2008-8-22

THREE people were killed and 70 others were injured yesterday after a 5.8-magnitude earthquake jolted Yingjiang, Yunnan Province, according the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

About 120,000 residents in Yingjiang County, Dehong Dai-Jinpo Autonomous Prefecture were taken to safety after the quake struck at 8:24pm yesterday.

The epicenter was about 10 kilometers underground and 500 kilometers from the provincial capital Kunming, according to a National Earthquake Network press release.

The affected area has a population density of 45 persons per square kilometer and is at an average altitude of 2,000 meters, it said.

It was the second earthquake to occur in Yingjiang in the last three days. A quake measuring 5.0 on the Richter scale struck the county at 5:35 am on Wednesday with the epicenter at Sudian Township, about 46 kilometers from Yingjiang.

More than 110 aftershocks with magnitudes of 3.6 or less were monitored as of 6 pm on Thursday, it said.