China Gets Hit by Earthquake Killing 3 and Injuring 23

China Gets Hit by Earthquake Killing 3 and Injuring 23

News

Reports from Beijing have revealed an earthquake of magnitude 5 that it China on Monday night. The disaster happened around 9:47 PM and destroyed a few properties close to the epicenter. According to the China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC), till now there are reports of 3 deaths and 23 injuries. The epicenter is the Yunnan province in the Qiaojia county. It is reported as a shallow earthquake that was 5 miles or 8 kilometers deep.

On the other hand, the US Geological Survey has recorded a magnitude of 4.5 and a depth of 6 miles or 10 kilometers. Although there are several discrepancies in both the data, it is not unusual given the vast distance. The recording in the US center happens over a duration of a couple of hours. So, it becomes difficult to record the exact measurement of the depth, magnitude, and time of a calamity.

The local news channels have released pictures of only one house that has collapsed due to the earthquake. The local residents were asked about the effects, and they have spoken about their experiences. They have said that the tremors remained strong for as long as a couple of minutes. As per reports, shallow earthquakes are more dangerous than the deep ones. It is because the damage caused is more in case of the shallow disasters. Besides, earthquake is a common problem in Yunnan province. The place lies in the eastern slide of the Tibetan plateau.

Why China is at risk always

China is known for a problem with frequent earthquakes and the one that hit China in 1976 was one of the most massive. Tangshan was the epicenter of this earthquake in which almost 2,50,000 people were killed. The worst one in recent times hit China’s Yunnan county back in 2008. The epicenter was the Sichuan Province during that incident. During that one, the death of 90,000 people was recorded. Another earthquake hit the same province again in 2013 and later in 2015 too. Though the government of China is very cautious about preventive measures, it often causes harm to the local economy and tourism.

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The latest reports of a minor earthquake before the one that took place on Monday was in 2016. The epicenter of the 2016 earthquake was in the Guangxi or Wuzhou province. Since that was a shallow earthquake as well, it did quite some damage to the surrounding areas. As per the latest update, China stands at number 10 in the list of countries that are most prone to an earthquake of 6.5+ magnitude.

The most common places that are more likely to be the epicenters of earthquakes in China are Sichuan Province, Taiwan, and the Yunnan Province. On the other hand, places far from West China such as Beijing and Hong Kong are amongst some of the low-risk areas. Back in 1975, China showed its capability of disaster management by carrying out an early evacuation process. It saved the lives of many locals when an earthquake of magnitude 7.5+ had hit the country.

Shusree Mukherjee

With 10+ years of experience in SEO content writing, Shusree believes content can move mountains while you deep dive into a pool of new experiences through learning and unlearning. Shusree loves to write on travel, health, beauty, celebrity, food, and all that jazz.

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