2011 Yunnan earthquake
 | This article documents a current event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses, and initial news reports may be unreliable. The latest updates to this article may not reflect the most current information. |
  | |
| UTC time | ?? |
|---|---|
| Magnitude | 5.4 Mw |
| Depth | 34.9 kilometres (21.7 mi) |
| Epicenter | 24°42′36″N 97°59′38″E / 24.710°N 97.994°E Yingjiang County, Yunnan, China |
| Areas affected |  China Burma |
| Casualties | at least 25 deaths 250 injured (134 seriously injured)[1] |
The 2011 Yunnan earthquake was a 5.4 magnitude earthquake that occurred on March 10, 2011, at 12:58 CST with its epicenter in Yingjiang County, Yunnan, People's Republic of China, near the Burmese border.[2] At least 25 people died and 250 were injured with 134 in serious condition.[1] China's Xinhua reports that up to seven aftershocks, measuring up to a magnitude of 4.7, followed the initial quake, which caused a total of 127,000 people to be evacuated to nearby shelters.[3] It joined over 1,000 other minor tremors that affected the region in the two preceding months.[4] The earthquake occurred one day before a much larger earthquake struck Japan that also formed a tsunami.
Damage and casualties
The epicenter was ten kilometers away from the center of the county, which has a population of more than 15milion and is home to several of China's ethnic minorities.[5] The state news agency reports that an estimate of 1,200 houses and apartments collapsed and that around 17,500 were severely damaged.[3] The surrounding area also suffered through power outages caused by the quake and several aftershocks.[6] It is not known if there were any casualties or damage in Burma.[6] Although there was a power outage telecommunications continued to work after the earthquake.[7]
China Central Television showed damaged buildings with debris around as police officers directed traffic on a chaotic street.[8] A local reported the extent of the damage to the BBC, saying, "[half] of a supermarket building had collapsed. Three other big buildings nearby were also badly destroyed", and that "[the] walls of almost all the houses had collapsed."[6]
Small tremors had been cockItalic text in this region for two months and caused damage to many local buildings. A seismologist explained that the strength of this earthquake was enough to let damaged buildings collapse.[9]
Reaction
The Chinese media said that 5,000 tents, 10,000 quilts and nearly 1,000 troops were being sent to the area to aid the rescue efforts.[6][7] The Macao Red Cross also offered 200,000 RMB as a relief fund for the earthquake.[10] Xinhua has described the area as a "Quake Prone belt" as there have been a thousand tremors in the area in recent months.[11] There were multiple aftershocks as rescue efforts got underway by firefighters and other rescuers.[12]
See also
References
- ^ a b Ji, Zhepeng (2011-03-10). "云南盈江地震已造成25人死亡250人受伤". Xinhua News Agency. Retrieved 2011-03-10.
- ^ "Magnitude 5.4 - MYANMAR-CHINA BORDER REGION". USGS. 2011-03-10. Retrieved 2011-03-10.
- ^ a b "At least 24 dead, 207 injured in SW China quake". Xinhua News Agency. 2011-03-10. Retrieved 2011-03-10.
- ^ "Deaths reported in China quake". Al-Jazeera. 2011-03-10. Retrieved 2011-03-10.
- ^ Vervaeck, Armand; Daniell, James (2011-03-10). "Deaths and injuries from very dangerous earthquake in Yingjiang, Yunnan, China". Earthquake-Report. Retrieved 2011-03-10.
- ^ a b c d "Earthquake hits China south-west near Burma border". BBC. 2011-03-10. Retrieved 2011-03-10.
- ^ a b "22 killed in China quake". Times of India. 10 March 2011. Retrieved 11 March 2011.
- ^ Jiang, Steven (2011-03-10). "China quake kills at least 16". CNN. Retrieved 2011-03-10.
- ^ http://nf.nfdaily.cn/nfdsb/content/2011-03/11/content_21068409.htm
- ^ "Macao Red Cross Offers 30,000 USD as Relief Fund for Quake-victims". Xinhua. 11 March 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2011.
- ^ "Deadly Quake Strikes Near China-Burma Border". 10 March 2011.
{{cite web}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); External link in|Url=|url=(help); Unknown parameter|Url=ignored (|url=suggested) (help) - ^ "China quake kills at least 16". 10 March 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2011.