Northeast quake: Seven killed, 136 injured in Tibet

Seven people were killed and 136 others injured in Tibet after the region was jolted by Sunday's powerful 6.8 magnitude temblor that centered in Sikkim, the Chinese government said today.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the earthquake affected about 75,000 people in 18 counties in the Xigaze and Shannan prefectures of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, and resulted in the evacuation of 19,000 residents, according to China's Ministry of Civil Affairs.

Seven people were killed and 136 others injured in Tibet. The quake slightly damaged about 13,000 houses, with another 4,500 destroyed or severely damaged, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Traffic, power, water supplies and telecommunications services were disrupted shortly after the quake in Tibet's Yadong county, which borders Sikkim.

One of the major roads connecting Yadong with Xigaze has resumed traffic and telecommunications services have been restored, as local authorities manged to install an emergency power supply system.

The ministry has sent 5,000 tents, 20,000 cotton quilts and 20,000 articles of clothing to quake-hit areas to aid in disaster relief efforts.

The ministry has also sent teams to the region to direct disaster relief operations, the report said.