BAQEN, Xizang, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- Sixteen people have been killed and 76 others are injured following a 7.0-magnitude earthquake which struck Baqen County of the city of Nagqu in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region at 10:33 p.m. on Thursday, local authorities said.
Casualty figures were updated as of 1 p.m. on Friday, according to a press conference held by the information office of the Nagqu municipal government.
More than 5,000 personnel have been deployed to the front lines of the disaster relief operation, working in teams responsible for search and rescue, medical treatment, temporary shelter and the provision of essential supplies.
Rescue operations are in full swing, while an emergency command headquarters has been established on the front lines to coordinate relief efforts.
Local authorities have launched round-the-clock intensified monitoring of key sites, including mountainsides, reservoirs, power stations, rivers, structurally unsafe buildings and telecommunications base stations. Emergency repairs are also underway, with damaged telecommunications and power facilities gradually being restored.
Earthquake monitoring, meteorological and emergency management departments, meanwhile, are coordinating closely to issue timely warnings of aftershocks and adverse weather conditions.
Police and transport authorities have inspected more than 1,700 kilometers of roads, 201 bridges and 324 culverts to ensure access for rescue operations, identifying 11 potential hazards and clearing fallen rocks from seven road sections, the press conference revealed.
The Red Cross Society of China has dispatched a working team to the disaster-hit area to guide local relief efforts. It has also allocated 3,800 sets of supplies, including family relief kits, hygiene kits, heaters, tents, jackets, folding beds and quilts.
The China Charity Federation, one of the country's most influential charity organizations, has urgently allocated 3 million yuan (about 446,561 U.S. dollars) to support emergency rescue endeavors. ■
