Magnitude 7.0 Earthquake Kills 16 and Flattens 339 Homes in Nagqu

A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck northern Tibet on Thursday night, killing at least 16 people and injuring 54, according to Chinese official media. The Nagqu media office stated that 339 homes and 20 livestock sheds collapsed in the region. Search and rescue operations remained active as crews worked through the debris.

The US Geological Survey recorded the tremor at 10.33 pm local time on Thursday. The epicenter lay 119 miles east-northeast of Nagqu in a sparsely populated, high-altitude area at a depth of 11 miles. The agency logged at least seven aftershocks ranging from magnitude 4.3 to 5.2, each occurring at a depth of 6 miles. CCTV described the event as the largest seismic activity in the region within the past five years.

Local authorities mobilized more than 1,600 workers from the county for rescue efforts. Xinhua reported that over 300 police officers joined the operation, while regional fire and rescue services sent nearly 350 personnel. Supplies dispatched to the zone included 1,000 prefabricated housing units, approximately 3,000 tents, folding beds, torches, and winter clothing.

Infrastructure damage disrupted regional transport. Local railway authorities halted trains passing through the area as a precaution. Rockfalls closed a section of National Highway 317, restricting access to emergency and official vehicles until crews cleared the debris. Xinhua confirmed that communications remained down in some affected areas on Friday.

Weather conditions added complexity to the relief effort. Intermittent snow was forecast for the three days following the quake. President Xi Jinping called for an all-out effort in rescue and medical relief operations. Nagqu is located more than 185 miles north of the Tibetan capital, Lhasa.

The event follows a pattern of seismic activity in the region. In January 2025, a quake in Tibet's rural Tingri county killed at least 126 people. In December 2023, a tremor in Gansu province resulted in at least 134 deaths, marking China's deadliest quake since 2014. In August, a flood on the Tibet-Nepal border drew limited international attention due to restricted media access.