5.0-magnitude quake hits Yunnan in SW China

KUNMING - A 5.0-magnitude earthquake jolted Honghe county in Honghe Hani and Yi autonomous prefecture, Southwest China's Yunnan province, at 1:27 am on Saturday (Beijing Time), according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.

The epicenter was monitored at 23.37 degrees north latitude and 102.26 degrees east longitude. The quake struck at a depth of 8 km, the CENC said.

House damages, such as collapsed tiles and wall cracking, were reported in the quake-affected areas, but no human casualties have been found, according to a press conference held by the Yunnan provincial seismological bureau Saturday morning.

Li Chunguang, an official of the bureau, said that the bureau has launched an emergency response to the quake, sending a team of 27 people to the disaster area with equipment to carry out on-site emergency work.

Meanwhile, local authorities have organized fire and rescue forces to assist in rescue and relief work in the disaster area.

So far, 147 rescuers from the fire and rescue department in the prefecture are conducting door-to-door investigations of the disaster. They are aided by 29 vehicles and 10 dogs.

In addition to Honghe County, several other counties, including Yuanjiang and Luchun where jolts were felt, also reported house damages.