31 injured after 5.4 magnitude earthquake strikes Southwest China

Beijing: Thirty-one people were injured after a 5.4-magnitude earthquake jolted Gongxian County in southwest China's Sichuan Province on Saturday, local authorities said on Sunday.

Rescuers sent the injured to hospitals for treatment. None were in critical condition. Twenty-one people remain hospitalised for observation and treatment, according to a press conference held by the quake relief headquarters in the city of Yibin, which administers Gongxian County.

The quake struck at 10:29 p.m. Saturday, at a depth of 10 km. The epicentre was monitored at 28.43 degrees north latitude and 104.77 degrees east longitude, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.

Li Tinggen, secretary-general of the Yibin municipal government, said at the press conference that after the earthquake, authorities acted swiftly to send rescuers to the epicenter. The disaster relief work is progressing in an orderly manner.

On Monday, a 6-magnitude earthquake struck Yibin, leaving 13 people dead and 220 others injured as well asforcing the evacuation of 80,000 people.