Powerful earthquake hits Tibet killing 16 people, reports say

A magnitude seven earthquake has hit a mountainous region in Tibet, killing at least 16 people and injuring dozens of others, according to Chinese state media reports.

The centre of the quake hit Baqên County in the Nagqu region on Thursday night, Xinhua reported, citing the local emergency management bureau. The county is 400km north-east of Tibet's capital, Lhasa.

Authorities have declared an emergency and deployed rescue teams to the affected area, where 32 others have also been injured.

Power has been cut off and 339 homes have collapsed in the affected region, local reports said.

Rockfall has forced roads in the region to close, making it more difficult for crews to reach impacted high-altitude areas.

Strong tremors were also felt in the cities of Qamdo and Nyingchi in Tibet.

Videos on social media show villagers running into the streets as buildings shake violently in the dark, although these have not been independently verified.

The region is prone to devastating seismic activity.

In 2023, a 6.2 magnitude quake killed more than 120 people in the nearby mountainous Gansu province of China.

Tibet and Nepal were also recently devastated by massive floods and landslides less than two months ago, unleashed by a glacier collapse, which killed at least 1,400 people. Hundreds of others are still reported missing.