A powerful magnitude 7 earthquake struck the Nagqu region of Tibet on Thursday night. The disaster left at least 16 people dead and 76 injured, destroying hundreds of residences in the high-altitude area .
The 339 collapsed homes of Nagqu
The earthquake caused catastrophic structural failure across the Nagqu region, with at least 339 homes completely collapsed. According to Chinese state media, the disaster hit a remote area north of Lhasa, the capital of Tibet,where the elevation reaches approximately 4,800 metres (15,748 feet) above sea level. Footage aired by the national broadcaster CCTV on Friday depicted a landscape of shattered stone walls and leveled hoses.
The human toll currently stands at 16 confirmed deaths and 76 injuries. Local officials have expressed grave concerns that aftershocks could trigger further building collapses, potentially increasing the casualty count in villages that were already devastated by the initial shock.
Deploying 5,000 rescuers to a 4,800-metre plateau
China has launched a massive relief operation, deploying more than 5,000 personnel from three local counties to conduct search and rescue missions . As reported by the official news agency Xinhua, more than 12,000 residents have been evacuated from the affected region to ensure their safety from falling debris and unstable terrain .
Logistics in the Tibetan plateau are severely hampered by the extreme environment. To combat freezing temperatures, authorities have moved in 2,000 prefabricated housing units, 3,400 tents, and 2,000 folding beds. Dunzhu, the acting mayor of Nagqu city, confirmed at a news conference that rescuers have already completed three exhaustive rounds of searches, visiting every household and village in the impacted zone.
USGS data and the seven recorded aftershocks
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported that the earthquake occurred at 10:33 p.m. local time on Thursday, with an epicentre located 191 kilometres (119 miles) east-northeast of Nagqu. the quake originated at a depth of 18 kilometres (11 miles), a characteristic often associated with the volatile tectonic activity of the Tibetan plateau.
Following the primary event, the USGS recorded at least seven aftershocks ranging in magnitude from 4.3 to 5.2. These secondary tremors, all occurring at a depth of 10 kilometres, have exacerbated the risk of rockslides. These rockfalls have already forced the closure of a section of National Highway 317,restricting traffic to emergency and official support vehicles only.
Xi Jinping's directive and the missing damage reports
President Xi Jinping has called for "all-out efforts" in medical relief and rescue operations. this level of direct intervention from the Chinese leader is typically reserved for only the most severe national disasters, signaling the gravity of the situation in Nagqu.
Despite the scale of the response, several critical pieces of information remain unavailable. While Xinhua reported that communication is down in some areas, authorities have not yet released a full accounting of the total damage across all affected counties. Furthermore, it remains unclear how many residents in the most remote,sparsely populated villages may still be trapped, as intermittent snow is forecast for the next three days, further complicating the reach of heavy equipment.
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