Strong Earthquake Rocks China, One Death Reported

A strong earthquake rocked China's Yunnan province on Tuesday, although the death toll remains low with one reported death and 36 injuries.

The 6.0 earthquake took place 18 kilometers west of Weiyuan city and occurred at 9:49 p.m. local time. Although the quake's shallow scope was expected to cause greater damage, no great destruction was reported by locals or the press.

One resident in the town of Yongping told the Xinhua News Agency that they experienced strong rocking and heard cracking sounds. "The whole building was shaking terribly with a loud cracking sound. Plates fell off in the kitchen. We all ran out and the streets now are packed with people," Li Anqin, one of the town's residents, told Xinhua.

United States Geological Society seismologist David Wald told the Los Angeles Times that while in California it would be safe to be in one's home during an earthquake, in China in would be different because so many people live under one roof.

"In California, probably the safest place you would be during an earthquake at night is in your home," Wald says. "In China, and in a number of places with agricultural societies, during the day you'd have a lot of people outside, and the worst time would be at night."

However, police are reporting few casualties in this recent quake because the epicenter for the natural disaster occurred in a sparsely-populated mountainous region of the country. Some people who felt the quake reportedly fled their homes and camped outdoors overnight in preparation for aftershocks.