Quakes trap Chinese in caves
From CNN Producer Steven Jiang
BEIJING, China (CNN) -- Two strong earthquakes have shaken northwestern China, killing at least nine people and injuring scores others, local officials said.
The magnitude 6.1 and 5.8 earthquakes jolted Minle and Shandan counties in Gansu province, about 1,200 kilometers (750 milers) northwest of Beijing, Saturday night, causing more than 10,000 homes to collapse, according to sate media and local authorities.
Twenty-nine people are injured and four are still trapped in caves, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported. Witnesses told CNN that the quakes could be felt in the provincial capital of Lanzhou, 520 kilometers (320 miles) to the southeast.
"We have dispatched tents, clothes and food to affected areas," an official surnamed Zhang told CNN from the disaster relief center in nearby Zhangye city, which administers the two counties.
"We have opened local reservoir sluice gates as an emergency measure after cracks were found on dam embankments," he added.
Xinhua reported numerous aftershocks and said that rescue efforts are still underway.
A team of 25 experts from the Central Seismology Bureau in Beijing have also been sent to the scene to monitor aftershocks.
