Earthquake of Magnitude 7.2 Hits China-Kyrgyzstan Border

(Photo Credit:@NCS_Earthquake)

An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 rocked the border region between Kyrgyzstan and Xinjiang on Monday, 23 January.

According to the state-run Xinhua press agency, the China Earthquake Networks Center said the quake hit Wushu county in Aksu prefecture shortly after 2 am local time.

Around six people have been reported to be injured, and more than 100 homes have been damaged, according to the Associated Press news agency, which is citing authorities.

China broadcaster CCTV reported that there were several aftershocks following the earthquake, two of which measured above a magnitude of 5.

The sub-zero temperature is what has made the rescue operation even more challenging in the area.

In nearby Kazakhstan, the emergency ministry registered an identical earthquake with a magnitude of 6.7, Reuters reported.

The earthquake also caused landslides in the region. China's CCTV shows a landslide caused by an earthquake that blocks a highway in Kizilsu Kirghiz Autonomous Prefecture, China's western Xinjiang region.

Strong tremors were even felt in Delhi-NCR, which is approximately 1,400 kilometres away.

The earthquake in December in the northwest of China killed 148 people and displaced thousands in Gansu province. It was termed one of the deadliest earthquakes since 2014, where more than 600 were killed in southwestern Yunnan province.