Earthquake death toll rises to 105 in China's Gansu

JISHISHAN -- The 6.2-magnitude earthquake that jolted an ethnic county in Northwest China's Gansu province at midnight Monday has killed 105 people in the province, according to a local press conference held on Tuesday morning.

According to the China Earthquake Networks Center, the quake jolted at 11:59 pm Monday and has a focal depth of 10 km. The epicenter Liugou township is about 8 km from the county seat of Jishishan Bao'an, Dongxiang, Salar autonomous county in Linxia Hui autonomous prefecture, Gansu.

The earthquake has also left 199 injured and damaged 6,381 houses in Jishishan. As of 8 am, 32 aftershocks were recorded, with the largest registering a magnitude of 4.0, said Han Shujun, a spokesperson for the provincial emergency management department, at the press conference.

The quake has destroyed some rural roads and led to power outages and telecommunication failures in some areas. The maintenance crew has been working overnight to repair the damaged infrastructure.

The earthquake was also strongly felt in the neighboring Qinghai province, causing 11 deaths, according to earlier reports.