Powerful Tibet earthquake near Nepal kills at least 32

A magnitude 6.8 earthquake rocked the northern foothills of the Himalayas near one of Tibet’s holiest cities on Tuesday, Chinese authorities said, killing at least 32 people and shaking buildings in neighbouring Nepal, Bhutan and India.

The quake hit at 9:05 a.m. (0105 GMT), with its epicentre located in Tingri, a rural Chinese county known as the northern gateway to the Everest region, at a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles), according to the China Earthquake Networks Centre. The U.S. Geological Service put the quake’s magnitude at 7.1.

At least 32 people had been killed and 38 injured on the Tibetan side, China’s state-run news agency Xinhua reported.

The impact of the temblor was felt across the Shigatse region of Tibet, home to 800,000 people. The region is administered by Shigatse city, the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama, one of the most important figures in Tibetan Buddhism.

Villages in Tingri reported strong shaking during the quake, which was followed by dozens of aftershocks with magnitudes of up to 4.4.