¡¡¡¡MOSCOW, Oct. 1 (Xinhuanet) -- An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of at least 7 on the Richter scale hit Russia's southwest Siberia region early Wednesday, destroying some buildings. But no casualties were reported so far, officials said.

¡¡¡¡The quake hit shortly after 5 a.m. Moscow Time (0100 GMT), and its epicenter was in Russia's mountainous Altai Republic, about 3,000 km east of Moscow.

¡¡¡¡The Altai Republic is a sparsely populated mountain region bordering Mongolia and Kazakhstan.

¡¡¡¡Local television reported that rescue teams have been sent to the region, which was struck by two strong quakes on Saturday.

¡¡¡¡The two strong quakes destroyed More than 800 homes and knockedout power and water supplies. But no casualties were reported. Enditem