THE BUZZ | Strong earthquake shakes southwestern China, one killed

A strong, shallow earthquake shook southwestern Yunnan province last night, killing at least one person, sending thousands fleeing into the streets and damaging buildings, officials and reports said.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake measured magnitude 6.0 and was centered 18 kilometers from Weiyuan city at a depth of 10.1 kilometers. Its shallow focus was likely to cause greater damage, but there were no immediate reports of serious destruction.
China’s national earthquake monitoring agency gave the quake’s magnitude as 6.6 and said it struck just 5 kilometers below the surface. It said the quake was followed by eight aftershocks, the strongest of which registered at magnitude 4.2.
The quake hit at 9:49 p.m. when most residents would have been in their homes.
In the town of Yongping, just 5 kilometers, at least one person was killed and three others injured, according to the official Xinhua News Agency. The surrounding county of Jinggu closest to the epicenter has a population of 290,000.