5.5-Magnitude Quake Hits China's Xinjiang

A 5.5-magnitude earthquake has damaged over 50 houses in China's far western Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, but no casualties were reported, rescuers said on Saturday. The quake jolted Yutian County in the prefecture of Hotan at 11:27 p.m. Thursday. The epicenter, with a depth of 6 km, was about 75 km from the county seat. It damaged 56 houses and 70 sheds for farm animals, disrupting the lives of 305 people of 76 families in the sparsely-populated Kunlun mountain areas, rescuers were quoted as saying by China's news agency "Xinhua". More than 20 people were injured when a 5.8-magnitude earthquake hit near the Xinjiang city of Kasghar on August 12.