China earthquake: Massive quake hits Xinjiang, Sichuan, 9 dead, 164 injured

At least nine people were killed and 164 other injured after a 7-magnitude earthquake jolted a remote but popular tourist destination in China's southwest last night, the state media reported today.

The quake has left nine people dead and 164 others injured. Five among the dead were visitors to the popular tourist destination of Jiuzhaigou national park, Xinhua news agency said citing a China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC) statement.

The massive earthquake struck at 9:19 PM (local time) yesterday and the epicenter was monitored at a depth of 20 km, it said.

Jiuzhaigou, or Jiuzhai Valley, is a national park known for spectacular waterfalls and karst formations. More than 34,000 people visited the tourist attraction yesterday.

So far, 31,500 tourists have been relocated to safe places.

The local government has organised tourist coaches and private-owned vehicles to rush to the affected areas to help transport the stranded tourists.
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