5.8-magnitude quake hits Xinjiang, no casualties reported

URUMQI -- No casualties have been reported so far following a 5.8-magnitude earthquake that struck Akqi County in Kirgiz Autonomous Prefecture of Kizilsu in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region at 12:14 pm Sunday (Beijing Time), authorities said.

The epicenter was monitored at 41.15 degrees north latitude and 78.41 degrees east longitude, and at a depth of 11 km, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.

The epicenter is 24 km away from the county seat of Akqi, and 68 km away from the county seat of Wushi, Aksu Prefecture. The areas around the epicenter are sparsely populated, but the jolt of the quake was strongly felt in both Akqi and Wushi counties.

"The furniture in my house was visibly shaking, and I could feel the ground shaking when running into the yard," recalled a resident in Akqi, who lives on the fourth floor of a building. "I feel a little scared after two consecutive days of earthquakes with magnitudes of more than 5."

Local authorities confirmed that no casualties or collapsed houses had been reported as of 1:00 pm Sunday.

According to the State Grid Akqi Power Supply Company, the local main grid and power distribution networks are operating normally. Currently, local train operations have not been affected.

A 7.1-magnitude earthquake jolted Wushi County and its surrounding areas on Jan 23, followed by multiple quakes in neighboring Akqi County. A 5.3-magnitude earthquake struck Akqi County at 6:58 am Saturday.

Gao Mengtan, an expert at the Institute of Geophysics of China Earthquake Administration, said after an earthquake of magnitude 7 or higher, aftershocks generally last from one month to several months, while their frequency gradually decreases.