China: Earthquakes shake northwestern, southwestern regions

Several strong earthquakes shook northwest and southwest China, leaving at least two people dead, local officials and seismologists have said.

Both the Qinghai province in the northwest and southwestern Yunnan province are prone to earthquakes. Both quakes were shallow and likely to cause more damage.

The 6.1 magnitude Yunnan quake struck first at 9:48 pm Friday (1348 UTC) near the city of Dali, a popular tourist destination, the US Geological Survey said. It was followed by at least two aftershocks, USGS said.

Two people were confirmed dead in the mountainous area, local officials said in a statement, adding that at least 17 others had been injured and were receiving treatment.

Later, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.4 shook northwestern China in the early hours of Saturday.

The earthquake occurred in the sparsely populated Qinghai province and struck at a depth of 10 kilometers (6.2 miles), according to the seismic network Geofon in Potsdam, Germany.

Aftershocks followed, with magnitudes of 4.8 and 4.5, respectively.