East Turkistan, home of the oppressed Uyghur Muslims, was hit by an earthquake of magnitude 7.1 on Tuesday afternoon, the day after a massive landslide struck the southwestern province of Yunnan. The earthquake killed at least three people, while at least 31 have been killed by the landslide.
China’s state-run Global Times reported that dictator Xi Jinping “demanded an all-out search and rescue” for victims of the landslide in Yunnan.
Xi also “demanded strengthened monitoring and a scientific approach in search and rescue efforts to guard against secondary disasters, as well as ensuring appropriate measures are taken to console the families of the victims and resettle those affected.”
The landslide struck a village called Liangshui in the early morning hours, catching residents by surprise and burying at least 47 of them in their homes. Rescue workers battled heavy snow, icy roads, and freezing temperatures to dig out some of the victims, while hundreds of village residents were evacuated to minimize the risk of another devastating landslide.
“We were all asleep at that time, in the early morning when it was still dark. Suddenly, there was a loud noise, and the ground shook. It felt like a major earthquake,” one of the survivors said.
According to the Global Times, over 900 rescue workers plus dozens of rescue dogs responded to the Liangshui disaster, and more could be on the way from neighboring provinces.
On Tuesday, Chinese state media reported 19 people were still missing in the rubble of shattered buildings and deep piles of frozen mud, while the official death toll was raised to 31. Search and rescue efforts were suspended temporarily on Tuesday due to a new landslide alert.
The mountain country of Yunnan is prone to landslides, which can be devastating for towns such as Liangshui clustered at the feet of the mountains. The preliminary investigation of Monday’s tragedy found that a section of clifftop about 330 feet wide collapsed and triggered the landslide, but the reason for this collapse was not immediately determined.
The Associated Press (AP) noted that “rain or unsafe construction work” are leading causes of landslides in China. At least 70 people were killed by landslides in China last year, 50 of them in a single incident at an open-pit mine in Inner Mongolia.
Meanwhile, Tuesday’s early-morning earthquake in Wushi county, East Turkistan – what the Communist Party calls the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) – destroyed at least 47 houses and killed three people. The Global Times reported that 12,426 people have been evacuated from the affected area.
Tremors from the quake were felt as far away as Urumqi, the capital city of Xinjiang, and in the neighboring countries of Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. Wushi residents reported buildings visibly swayed for over a minute, inspiring them to rush outside despite sub-freezing temperatures.
The epicenter of the quake was located in a sparsely populated area, as Xinjiang Earthquake Administration chief Zhang Yongjiu explained to reporters.
“This 7.1 rating is very strong, but the death and injury situation is not severe,” Zhang said.
“It is the first time I’ve felt such a strong tremor in my life. I shouted ‘earthquake’ and I ran downstairs. I didn’t even have time to get my clothes and my shoes on,” said a survivor from Aksu, a prefecture about sixty miles from the epicenter.
As with the Yunnan landslides, rescue workers in Wushi said extreme cold was an obstacle, as temperatures plunged below zero degrees Fahrenheit. China’s Ministry of Emergency Management forwarded a supply of tents, blankets, and winter clothing for residents who cannot yet return to their homes.
Rescue teams in Wushi included hundreds of soldiers from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), as China maintains a heavy military presence in the restless province.
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