More than (53) people were killed in Tuesday’s 7th of January 2025, deadly earthquake in China’s remote Tibet region, which also caused “many buildings” to collapse, according to official media. Parts of India and neighboring Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, were also affected.

CCTV, China’s national channel, released footage of homes with walls smashed away.

Video showed rescuers walking through debris scattered around the ruins following the earthquake, as others provided residents with heavy blankets to stay warm.

CCTV video footage showed shoppers racing down a store’s halls as shelves moved harshly knocking toys and other items to the floor.

Deaths And Injuries

The China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC) reports that the strong earthquake, which had a magnitude of (6.8), struck Dingri county around {9:05 am (0105 GMT)} close to the Nepali border. The tremor’s magnitude was (7.1), according to the US Geological Survey.

According to the Xinhua news agency, “a (6.8) magnitude earthquake jolted Dingri County in the city of Xigaze in Xizang Autonomous Region at (9:05 am) Tuesday 7th of January, resulting in (53) confirmed deaths and (62) injuries as of Tuesday noon.”

It further stated that more than (1,000) homes had been damaged to varied degrees.

Advice President Of China

According to official broadcaster CCTV, “many buildings near the center of the earthquake have collapsed, and Dingri County and the nearby regions experienced extremely powerful tremors.”

CCTV said that Chinese President Xi Jinping emphasized “complete search and rescue operations, limiting losses to the highest level possible, carefully moving wounded citizens, and securing their safety and heating through the winter” on 7th of January.

“To analyze the impact of the earthquake, local authorities have gone out to different townships in the county,” according to China’s President.

The China Meteorological Administration reports that temperatures in Dingri are currently at about {minus 8 degrees Celsius (17.6 degrees Fahrenheit)} and will plummet to (minus 18) tonight evening.

According to Xinhua, central authorities have sent disaster relief supplies, like ()cotton tents, blankets, and things for cold and high-altitude regions, to areas affected by the earthquake.

Located on the Chinese side of Mount Everest, the high-altitude county in the Tibet area is home to over (62,000) people. Although the area frequently experiences earthquakes, the CENC said that Tuesday’s quake was the strongest to be recorded within (200) kilometers in the previous (5) years.

Nepal Also Shook Pretty Badly

In addition to Kathmandu, the tremor and aftershocks also shook the areas surrounding Lobuche in Nepal, which is located in the high highlands close to Everest.

In Nepal’s Namche area, which is closer to Everest, government official Jagat Prasad Bhusal stated, “It shook really badly here, everyone is awake.” However, according to Nepali Home Minister spokesman Rishi Ram Tiwari, security personnel had been sent in and no damage or fatalities had been recorded as of yet.

Earthquakes frequently occur in Nepal because the country is situated on a major geological faultline where the Indian (tectonic) plate pushes up into the (Eurasian) plate to build the Himalayas. A (7.8) magnitude earthquake that rocked Nepal in 2015 destroyed almost half a million houses, leaving roughly (9,000) dead and over (22,000) wounded. Whereas in India’s Bihar state, there were some earthquakes, but no casualties were reported.