China hit by second earthquake, 32 injured

Beijing: China was rattled by the second earthquake of 6.6 magnitude on Wednesday, injuring 32 people, even as rescue efforts were on in Sichuan province where a powerful quake a day earlier killed 19 people. An earthquake of 7.0 magnitude jolted a tourist destination in Sichuan on Tuesday night. The second quake in Jinghe county in Bortala prefecture in Xinjiang province happened at 7.27 a.m. at a depth of 11 km, Xinhua news agency reported. Of the 32 injured, two were in a serious condition. A total of 142 homes collapsed, authorities said. At least 121 aftershocks were recorded as of 1 p.m. with the magnitude of 6. About 600 houses and livestock sheds were damaged in neighbouring Ili Kazakh prefecture. Services of 40 passenger trains were stopped and 21 others suspended. Earlier reports said residents in Jinghe county and the cities of Urumqi, Changji, Yining and Karamay felt strong tremors that lasted 10 to 20 seconds. The epicentre was 37 km from Jinghe county seat, 93 km from Bole city, and 383 km from Urumqi. Jinghe county has a population of about 150,000. A total of 65 quakes greater than magnitude 3 have been recorded within 200 km of the epicentre over the past five years, the current being the greatest.