At least four people were killed and 14 others injured in a magnitude 6.1 earthquake in southwest China. The tremors also triggered landslides. The epicenter was in Lushan County near the city of Ya’an, more than 100 kilometers southwest of the metropolis of Chengdu (Sichuan province), as reported by the Beijing earthquake agency on Wednesday. Roads were blocked and homes damaged.
Videos that could not be verified showed a landslide damaging a cement factory, cars and homes. It was also possible to see fallen rocks lying on roads. The authorities launched an emergency response plan and sent rescue workers to the earthquake area. Eyewitnesses reported that units of the People’s Liberation Army had also been dispatched.
According to official information, around 70,000 people live in the hilly area around the epicenter. As an expert from the command center reported on state television, the tremors are an aftershock of a magnitude 7 earthquake in the area in 2013.
