Fresh earthquake hits southwest China

A 4.8 magnitude earthquake jolted southwest China’s Yunnan Province at 1:01 p.m. Wednesday (Beijing Time), one day after a 4.9-magnitude tremor injured eight people in the province. The epicenter with a depth of 5 km, was in Mojiang Hani Autonomous County, the China Earthquake Networks Center said. People in Mojiang county said they strongly felt the earthquake. One said he saw the television set and water dispenser shaking in the second floor office of his work when the quake occurred. He and his colleagues immediately ran out of the building, according to Xinhua news agency. Mojiang earthquake authorities said cracks appeared in walls of some houses. The exact damage is being examined. A string of tremors have hit south and southwest China over the past two days. A 4.9-magnitude quake, which occurred at 10:46 a.m. Tuesday with an epicenter 6 km deep, toppled 72 houses and damaged 949 others in Yunnan’s Qiaojia County. Eight people were injured, including two people in serious condition. Sichuan Province, which neighbors Yunnan, was also hit by two earthquakes with magnitudes of 4.5 and 4.7 on Tuesday.