Chinese leaders stress safety after Xinjiang quake

BEIJING - President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang ordered concerted effort to guarantee safety and property after an earthquake hit Northwest China's Xinjiang region Wednesday.

President Xi and Premier Li issued instructions on relief work soon after the 7.3-magnitude quake struck at 5:19 p.m.

Local authorities and departments were urged to check disaster situations, conduct emergency management and strengthen seismic monitoring.

The epicenter was at a depth of 12 km in Yutian county in southwest Xinjiang, according to official readings by the China Earthquake Networks Center.

Another 5.7-magnitude quake hit the same area at 5:24 pm at a depth of 5 km, followed by more than a dozen quakes under 5-magnitude, the center added.

No immediate casualties or damage have been reported in the sparsely-populated area.

Follow China Daily website's report:

23:58

An emergency rescue team arrives at Hetian, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, on Feb 12, 2014, Xinhua reported.

21:31

Two military helicopters were sent to the quake-stricken areas for relief work, CCTV reported.

21:29

This screenshot from the official microblog of China Earthquake Networks Center shows the epicenter of a 7.3-magnitude earthquake that stroke Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region on Feb 12,2014.

There were 46 minor afterquakes recorded by the China Earthquake Networks Center after the 7.3-magnitude earthquake.

19:46

One section of railway connecting Hami and Hotan prefectures was closed after the quake.

Backgrounder: Yutian county is a mountainous area on the edge of the Kunlun Mountains, with a population of around 200,000.

"When the earthquake happened, I felt the desk shaking. I run downstairs; after more than a dozen seconds, the earthquake stopped,"chinanews.com quoted a staff member from the civil affairs bureau of Hotan prefecture as saying.

19:13

Hotan prefecture's earthquake administration has sent people to collect information in Yutian, Qira and minfeng counties. No casualties were reported. 

19:05

Footages from CCTV, China's state broadcaster showed there were no collapse of buildings and local residents were gathering outside in Yutian county.

19:03

Chinese presidentXi Jinpingand PremierLi Keqiangcalled for all-out relief to the quake-stricken areas.

18:33

The Xinjiang earthquake administration said on its official microblog that the nearest settlement to the epicentre was some 50 km away and that the Yutian government had yet to receive any reports of damage.

The Xinjiang government said on its microblog that it planned to send a 20-person rescue team to the area, in which it said virtually nobody lived.

No immediate casualties or damage have been reported. The area is sparsely populated mostly by Uygurs. An earthquake of similar size struck the same area in 2008, causing no injuries or damage.