2010-06-10 21:56

URUMQI - An earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale hit a remote mountainous region in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region Thursday afternoon.

While there are not yet reports of casualties, local officials at Wuqia county of Kizilsu prefecture, about 60 km from the quake epicenter, said they are still assessing damage from the earthquake.

Related readings:  4.6-magnitude earthquake jolts northern China  Magnitude-5.0 earthquake hits Sichuan  Moderate earthquake jolts Tibet  Aftershocks may hit Northwest after Yushu earthquake

According to the China Earthquake Networks Center, the earthquake struck at 2:38 pm. The epicenter was 39.9 degrees north latitude and 74.7 degrees east longitude, officials said.

Residents in Wuqia and at least three neighboring villages and townships felt the quake.

Also, communications were temporarily shut down after the tremor.

Reached by phone, an official in Wuheshalu town told Xinhua that many houses in the township suffered cracks during the quake but there are no immediate reports of casualties.

"What I worry about most is what happened to about 60 people at a herdsman settlement some 80 km from the epicenter," Li Rongjun, the official, said. "They can not be reached by phone. We have sent people there to check."

There were also a number of mines near the epicenter, but these mines were not being operated at the time of the quake, Li said.