Hundreds injured and forced to camp outside as strong earthquake hits China's remote southwest

  • Yunnan province hit by 6.4 magnitude quake
  • Jinngu county, the epicentre, is home to about 300,000 people 

By Reuters

Published: 20:58 EST, 7 October 2014 | Updated: 09:23 EST, 8 October 2014

One person has died and 324 left injured after an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.4 struck in China's southwestern province of Yunnan.

The United States Geological Survey said the earthquake's epicentre was 100 miles north-northwest of Yunjinghong and six miles deep.

The official Xinhua news agency said shaking could be felt in the provincial capital of Yunnan, Kunming, as well as several other major cities in the province, when the earthquake hit on Tuesday.

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A man walks by damaged homes in Yongping, southwestern China's Yunnan province, following the earthquake

A man walks by damaged homes in Yongping, southwestern China's Yunnan province, following the earthquake

The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake's epicentre was 100 miles north-northwest of Yunjinghongand

The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake's epicentre was 100 miles north-northwest of Yunjinghongand

Aftershocks could be felt in the provincial capital of Yunnan, Kunming, as well as several other major cities

Aftershocks could be felt in the provincial capital of Yunnan, Kunming, as well as several other major cities

Houses reportedly shook for several seconds and some crumbled as aftershocks continued to strike

Houses reportedly shook for several seconds and some crumbled as aftershocks continued to strike

'The whole building was shaking terribly with a loud cracking sound. Plates fell off in the kitchen,' Weiyuan resident Li Anqin said.

'We all ran out and the streets now are packed with people.'

The epicentre, Jinggu county, is in a remote, largely rural and mountainous part of Yunnan.

Xinhua quoted a county official as saying houses shook for several seconds and some tiles fell off roofs while residents ran outside. 

Pictures from the scene showed smashed tiles and bricks on the ground in one village, with cracks in the walls of some of the low-rise houses. People were also pictured camping outdoors in anticipation of more aftershocks.

The People's Daily said the county is home to about 300,000 people, most of them members of ethnic minorities.

Many residents were forced to flee their homes and dozens set up camp in Mangla Village in Yunnan, China

Many residents were forced to flee their homes and dozens set up camp in Mangla Village in Yunnan, China

Dozens were forced to set up tents and seek shelter outside after their homes were damaged by the quake

Dozens were forced to set up tents and seek shelter outside after their homes were damaged by the quake

One person died and 324 were injured in the earthquake which has left dozens other homeless in China

One person died and 324 were injured in the earthquake which has left dozens other homeless in China

More that 1,000 rescuers, including soldiers, were on their way to the scene, with tents, blankets and other relief materials, state television added.

About 600 people died in a 6.3 magnitude quake which hit another part of Yunnan in August.

Earthquakes frequently strike in the region. A quake in Sichuan province, also in the southwest, in 2008 killed almost 70,000 people.