A 5.9-magnitude earthquake struck Saturday morning in southwestern China, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Officials reported one death and three people injured as emergency teams began to respond, state-run Xinhua News Agency said.
The quake -- with a depth
of 10 kilometers -- hit in remote areas near the border of the Yunnan
and Sichuan provinces, according to the USGS.
Roads are reportedly
blocked in some villages by boulders rolling down mountains, and some
villagers have been taken to hospitals, Xinhua said.
The Civil Affairs Ministry in Yunnan province was sending tents and clothing, Xinhua said.
The epicenter was near Benzilan Township, the USGS reported.
"We are heading to
Benzilan," Liao Wencai, vice secretary of the Deqen County Committee of
the Communist Party of China, told Xinhua. "The telecommunication there
has been cut off, and many residents cannot be reached by mobile phone."
On Wednesday, a 5.1-magnitude earthquake hit the same region.
