Powerful earthquake rocks remote region of Tibet and parts of Nepal, killing more than 120

Hong Kong (CNN) — More than 120 people have been killed after a powerful earthquake struck a remote region of Tibet on Tuesday morning, with tremors felt across the Himalayas in neighboring Nepal, Bhutan and parts of northern India.

The 7.1-magnitude quake struck at 9:05 a.m. local time at a depth of 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) and was followed by multiple aftershocks, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

The energy unleashed by the tectonic movement toppled houses in remote Himalayan villages, rocked a nearby Tibetan holy city and rattled visitors to a Mount Everest base camp.

At least 126 people were killed and 188 others were injured in the quake, according to state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV). More than 3,600 houses were damaged, it said.

Its epicenter, located in Tingri county high on the Tibetan plateau, was close to the border with Nepal, around 50 miles north of the world’s highest mountain.

The tremors were felt as far away as Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital. “It was very strong. People came running out of their houses. You could see the wires from poles shaken loose,” said Bishal Nath Upreti from the Nepal Centre for Disaster Management, a non-government organization in Kathmandu.

In Tibet, massive rescue efforts by emergency services and the Chinese military have freed more than 400 people trapped by rubble. Over 30,000 residents have been relocated as rescuers continue the search for survivors, authorities said.

The region close to the epicenter is sparsely populated but small villages are nestled in isolated and often hard-to-access Himalayan valleys. About 6,900 people are estimated to live in 27 villages within a 20km (12 mile) radius of the epicenter, according to Xinhua.

Footage on state media showed the wreckage of collapsed houses and crumpled walls strewn across villages at foothills, with rescuers digging through rubble with bare hands to search for survivors.

Chinese social media videos geolocated by CNN showed damaged roofs, shop fronts and debris piling on the streets of Lhatse county, some 86 km (53 miles) from the epicenter. Some cars and motorcycles parked along the road were also damaged, the footage showed.

The nearest major city to the epicenter is the holy city of Shigatse, some 180 km (111 miles) away. The city is home to about 800,000 people and the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama, the second-highest spiritual leader in Tibetan Buddhism, second only to the Dalai Lama.

The Dalai Lama, who lives in self-imposed exile in India, said he was “deeply saddened” to learn of the earthquake. “I offer my prayers for those who have lost their lives and extend my wishes for a swift recovery to all who have been injured,” he said.

Surveillance camera footage at a supermarket in Shigatse shared by Xinhua captured the moment the quake struck, with customers running outside as goods fell from quivering shelves. There were no immediate reports of widespread damage in the city.

Pu Chi, who lives in Bainang county – about 200 km (125 miles) from the epicenter in Tingri – said she was lying in bed Tuesday morning when she felt the room shake and saw the ceiling light begin to sway.

“I was really scared, so I quickly threw on some clothes and ran outside, then called my family to let them know,” Pu, 24, told CNN. She said it was the first time she had experienced an earthquake.

China’s meteorological administration has warned local residents to take shelter from the cold and wind, with temperatures due to plummet to below 0 degrees Fahrenheit (-18 degrees Celsius) at points over the next two days. Shingatse’s regional government has dispatched thousands of tents, beds and coats to the affected area.

In a statement following the quake, Chinese leader Xi Jinping called on officials to make all-out efforts to search for and rescue survivors, minimize casualties, properly accommodate affected residents, and ensure their safety and warmth in the winter cold.

More than 1,600 soldiers from the People’s Liberation Army and paramilitary police have been deployed to join the rescue, along with military drones, helicopters and transport aircraft.

The State Grid Tibet Electric Power Company has sent a first wave of personnel to affected areas to restore power, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported.

China’s Red Cross Society has allocated more than 4,600 items of disaster relief supplies, including tents, quilts, thermal jackets, and folding beds, for those needing emergency accommodation. The Red Cross has also sent rescue teams to the area, CCTV reported.

Everest and Nepal rattled

Anna Guo, an 18-year-old college student traveling with a tour group, was about to depart Shigatse and head southwest to see Mount Everest when the ground started shaking violently on Tuesday morning.

“I was waiting in line and we heard something – then we realized it was an earthquake. It got stronger and stronger and the windows started shaking,” she told CNN.

“We have never felt an earthquake that strong before.”

On Tuesday, local authorities closed down a base camp for climbing Mount Everest, as well as the surrounding scenic area. Winter is not high season for climbing the world’s highest mountain, but some Chinese tourists still visit the scenic area for breathtaking views of the Himalayan mountains.

Ba Luo, a staff member at the base camp, said he felt tremors of the earthquake, but no damage was done to the buildings. Nearly 500 tourists visited the camp Monday and about 30 visitors were at the base when the quake struck, he said, adding that all tourists had been evacuated.

In Nepal’s Solukhumbu district, just across the border from the Chinese county at the epicenter, the tremors brought back memories of the devastating 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck near Kathmandu in 2015, killing about 9,000 people and injuring thousands.

“The tremors were very strong, definitely everyone is panicked,” Rupesh Vishwakarmi, a local district official, told CNN. At a yak farm close to the Nepal base camp for Mount Everest, “everything is shaking” and the employees were “very scared,” he said.

Nepali police said 13 injured people had been rescued across the country. The country’s Ministry of Home Affairs said 10 houses had been damaged and one completely destroyed.

By Wednesday evening, more than 500 aftershocks had been recorded, 27 of which had magnitudes of 3.0 and above, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.

Tibet is one of the most restricted and politically sensitive regions in China, and access by foreign visitors remains tightly controlled. Beijing has maintained a tight grip on the region since the Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule.

This story has been updated with additional developments.

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