A strong earthquake of magnitude 6.8 on the Richter scale struck Tingri County, Shigatse City, Tibet Autonomous Region, China, on the 7th, resulting in 126 deaths and 188 injuries. Currently, 46,500 disaster victims have been evacuated and over 400 trapped individuals have been rescued, yet many remain missing in the harsh cold. By 8 a.m. on the 9th, a total of 1,095 aftershocks had been recorded, with the largest measuring 4.4 in magnitude.
China Earthquake Networks Center officially confirmed a 4.0 magnitude earthquake also occurred in Shuanghu County, Nagqu City, Tibet, at 8:34 a.m. on the same day, with a focal depth of 10 kilometers.
Currently, Tingri County People's Hospital is the primary local hospital treating disaster victims. On the day of the strong earthquake, the hospital treated over 200 people, with more than 30 of the severely injured transferred to Shigatse City People's Hospital. Relevant departments have initiated a national level two earthquake emergency response, and the first batch of central disaster relief materials has been delivered to the disaster area. All earthquake-damaged road sections in Tingri County have been repaired, power has been restored to the county seat and multiple townships, and communication signals in the disaster area have been restored.
Recently, a photo of a "little boy trapped under rubble" associated with the Tibet earthquake has been widely circulated online, but it was revealed to be an AI-generated fake image.
Chinese media reported on Thursday that, in response to the damage caused by the earthquake in parts of Tingri County to farmland facilities, greenhouses, livestock pens, and the death of livestock, the Ministry of Finance, in conjunction with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, swiftly conducted disaster assessment and damage analysis. On the 8th, the central government urgently allocated 80 million RMB (49.11 million MYR) for agricultural production disaster relief and rehabilitation in Tibet, including support for the repair of agricultural and livestock facilities affected by the earthquake and appropriate subsidies for purchasing medicine, fuel, and feed to promote the rapid restoration of agricultural production order and minimize disaster losses in the affected areas.
The United States Geological Survey stated that this earthquake was extremely strong, with some terrain within an 80-kilometer radius of the epicenter sinking by 1.6 meters. The epicenter is located 80 kilometers north of Mount Everest, where nighttime temperatures can drop to as low as minus 18 degrees Celsius. The high-altitude and oxygen-poor environment increase the difficulty and pressure on rescue efforts.
British media quoted experts warning that those trapped or homeless face a rapid risk of hypothermia. Even without injuries, they may only survive 5 to 10 hours.