Strong earthquake jolts southwest China

A strong 6.6-magnitude earthquake jolted southwest China today evening.
Officials said no casualties have been reported so far.
The quake, with a focal depth of just five kilometres, was felt strongly in Jinggu Dai and Yi Autonomous County in Yunnan province, which has a population of 290,000, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
The quake shook buildings for several seconds. Residents have been evacuated to open areas, a local official said.
Some phone calls to Jinggu went unconnected.
Pictures posted on the internet show cracks on walls.

The China Earthquake Networks Centre said the epicentre was monitored about 67 kms away from Lincang city and 85 kms away from Pu'er city.

Strong tremors were also felt in the provincial capital of Kunming.
A 6.5-magnitude quake in Ludian, Yunnan, on August 3 had killed more than 600 people.
Back in 1970, a strong 7.7-magnitude quake in Yunnan had killed at least 15,000 people.