7 killed as 6.8 magnitude earthquake strikes Sichuan province of southwest China

China's southwestern province of Sichuan was hit by a 6.8 magnitude earthquake on Monday and at least seven people were killed as result, with its tremors being felt as far away as Changsha and Xian. The area's population has already been reeling under the rising number of Covid 19 cases and extreme drought conditions.

The town of Luding is where the earthquake's epicentre is, at a depth of 16 kilometres.

According to the China Earthquake Networks Centre, the quake hit around 43 kilometres southeast of the city of Kangding in Sichuan province at a depth of 10 kilometres.


No casualties have been reported in the province, so far, despite there being a second earthquake, measuring 4.2 in magnitude in the city of Yaan, just moments later.