Lhasa, Jan 8 (IANS): A total of 646 aftershocks have been detected as of Wednesday noon after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake jolted the Nepal-Tibet border region, the regional government said.
The largest aftershock had a magnitude of 4.4, and was about 18 kilometres from the epicentre, said Hong Li, head of the regional emergency management department.
The earthquake has caused 126 deaths and injured another 188. Telecommunications, roads and power have been restored in the quake-hit region.
The Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) on Tuesday night allocated a second batch of relief supplies to the quake-affected areas, which comprised 4,300 items such as cotton tents, quilts and folding beds.
More than 50 rescue workers were also sent to the areas by the RCSC, bringing along emergency sanitary toilets, catering vehicles and camper vehicles, among other emergency response supplies, Xinhua news agency reported.
The National Centre for Seismology (NCS) had confirmed that the earthquake occurred at 6:35 am (IST) on Tuesday morning, with its epicentre at latitude 28.86°N and longitude 87.51°E, at a depth of 10 km. The location was identified as Xizang (Tibet Autonomous Region), near Nepal's border.
In Tonglai Village, Changsuo Township of Dingri in Xigaze (Shigatse), several houses have collapsed.
The earthquake also sent tremors across northern India, affecting areas such as Bihar, West Bengal, Sikkim, and Delhi-NCR, causing panic as residents rushed out of their homes. However, no casualties or property damage has been reported in India, so far.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) pinpointed the earthquake's location 93 km northeast of Lobuche, near the Nepal-Tibet border. Lobuche lies near the Khumbu Glacier, approximately 150 km east of Kathmandu and 8.5 km southwest of Everest Base Camp.
Nepal, situated in a highly seismically active zone where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates converge, is no stranger to earthquakes. This tectonic activity, which forms the Himalayan region, often results in seismic events of varying magnitudes.
Authorities in Nepal and affected Indian regions remain vigilant, closely monitoring the situation. The earthquake has renewed concerns in an area historically vulnerable to devastating seismic activity.