BEIJING, Sept 6 (Reuters) – The death toll from an earthquake that struck central China’s Sichuan province on Monday rose to 65 as rescuers scramble to rescue hundreds of stranded people and to restore public services.
Nearly 250 people were injured, dozens of whom are in critical condition, state media reported, which also reported more than 200 people stranded in the earthquake zone in Hailuogou.
In Luding, the epicenter of the earthquake, electrical and water infrastructure as well as homes and telecommunications were badly damaged, according to state television.
Electricity was cut in several towns, sections of highways collapsed and seven small to medium-sized hydroelectric power stations suffered damage.
Earthquakes are relatively common in Sichuan, especially in the western mountains of the province, an active seismic zone located at the eastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau.
Monday’s 6.8 magnitude quake was the strongest recorded in the region since August 2017. In 2008, an 8.0 magnitude quake centered in Wenchuan killed nearly 70,000 people. (Report Albee Zhang and Liz Lee; French version Alizée Degorce, edited by Jean-Stéphane Brosse)
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