An earthquake measuring 6.2 on the Richter scale rocked Yunnan
Province in southwest China late Monday night, according to the
China Seismological Bureau.
The tremor occured in Dayao County, some 180 kilometers away
from the provincial capital city of Kunming, at 23:16 Monday. It
was felt in Kunming, according to local sources.
A number of buildings and residential houses in Dayao County
collapsed, while no report of casualties had been received by 00:30
Tuesday, Zhi Jinli, secretary of the Dayao County Committee of the
Communist Party of China, told Xinhua on phone.
Disaster relief work was immediately launched and the local
authorities have dispatched rescue teams to all of Dayao's 14
townships, Zhi said.
The provincial government has also sent two teams consisting of
officials and experts to the county to look into the situation and
help organize rescue work.
The epicenter was located at Tanhua Town at 26.0 degrees north
latitude and 101.2 degrees east longitude, according to
seismologists.
(Xinhua News Agency July 22, 2003)