5.4-magnitude quake hits China's Sichuan province, 31 injured

Thirty-one people were injured after a 5.4-magnitude earthquake hit the Gongxian County in southwest China's Sichuan Province on Saturday, authorities said Sunday.

The injured were rushed to the hospitals.

Twenty-one of them were hospitalised for observation and treatment, officials of the city of Yibin told media.

The quake struck at 10:29 p.m. (local time) Saturday, at a depth of 10 km. The epicentre is monitored at 28.43 degrees north latitude and 104.77 degrees east longitude, according to the China Earthquake Networks Centre (CENC).

Following the quake on Saturday, an aftershock of 4.6-magnitude struck Gongxian County, Yibin, at 8:28 a.m. (local time) on Sunday, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

On June 17, 12 people were killed and 220 others injured after a 6.0-magnitude earthquake hit the province.

A 5.3-magnitude earthquake rattled Changning County of Yibin City the next day.

Li Tinggen, secretary-general of the Yibin municipal government, told reporters on Sunday that after the earthquake, rescuers were rushed to the village, located at the epicentre.

The disaster relief work is progressing in an orderly manner, the official added.

Li said the post-earthquake assessment of houses had been basically completed. The affected people have been evacuated and resettled.

The water, power and natural gas supply as well as communication and transportation in the disaster-stricken areas have basically returned to normal, Xinhua quoted Li as saying.

Wang Bufen, a 81-year-old woman living in a temporary settlement in Zhujia Village, said that although she and her four family members were still scared, she felt good the family was together in the settlement with food, water and toiletries guaranteed, the report said.

Tremors were also felt in Chengdu, Liangshan and other Sichuan cities.