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URUMQI, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- No casualties have been reported by local governments after a magnitude 6.7 earthquake jolted Akto County, Kizilsu Kirghiz Autonomous Prefecture in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region at 10:24 p.m. Friday.
According to the China Earthquake Networks Center, the epicenter is located at 39.27 degrees north latitude and 74.04 degrees east longitude. The quake struck at a depth of 10 km.
Strong tremors were felt in neighboring Kashgar Prefecture. Sections of railway in southern Xinjiang have been temporarily closed.
The Akto county government said the epicenter is in cold highland areas that are sparsely populated.
Local officials have reached a village near the epicenter, where about 80 households live. Damaged houses and dead livestock were found, but no people were injured.
The China Earthquake Administration has activated a level-III emergency response and sent work team to the quake-hit area. An emergency response was also initiated by the regional seismological bureau.
Statistics show that 83 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or over have occurred within 200 km of the epicenter in the past five years, with the largest recorded on Dec. 7, 2015 when a magnitude 7.4 quake jolted Tajikistan.
