Relief tents for relocated villagers are seen at a temporary shelter in Maru Township, Baqen County, Southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, on October 23, 2026. Photo: VCG

Earthquake relief operations continued on Sunday after a magnitude-7.0 earthquake struck Baqen County of the city of Nagqu in Southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, leaving16 people dead and 76 others injured. Relief supplies covering 20 categories had arrived, power supply had been fully restored, and medical treatment and disease prevention efforts were underway in the affected areas. 

The earthquake struck at 10:33 pm on Thursday. As of 5 pm Saturday, 36 injured people remained hospitalized, with the rest discharged after treatment, China Central Television (CCTV) reported. 

The earthquake affected 13,673 people across two townships and 34 administrative villages, prompting the relocation of 12,489 people. As of 2 pm on Saturday, 949 aftershocks had been recorded, including eight with magnitudes of 4.0 to 4.9, CCTV reported. 

Latest updates from China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC) on Sunday night said that another 3.2-magnitude earthquake struck Baqen County at 7:30 pm on Sunday, at a depth of 10 kilometers, according to the official Sina Weibo account of CENC. 

A magnitude-5.7 earthquake struck Baqen County at 7:25 pm on Sunday. It was an aftershock of the earlier magnitude-7.0 earthquake and the strongest aftershock recorded so far.

Authorities in Nagqu city swiftly mobilized rescue teams and relief supplies following the earthquake. As of 5 pm on Saturday, 60,518 items and sets of relief supplies across 20 categories, including 4,758 tents and 2,000 prefabricated housing units, had been delivered to the affected areas, according to CCTV. 

Relief supplies and rescue teams have been deployed to earthquake-hit areas, and a  Wing Loong unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) has also arrived at the site. As of 11 am on Saturday, 1,830 tents had been set up in Baqen County, providing accommodation for 12,489 people. 

The Western Theater Command of the Chinese People's Liberation Army has coordinated ground and air forces to assess the damage and carry out search-and-rescue operations. More than 400 service members and militiamen from the local subcommand and police have been deployed, helping relocate and resettle nearly 500 affected residents as of 5 pm on Friday, according to Xinhua. 

Du Guoping, a native of Dingxi, Northwest China's Gansu Province, who runs a restaurant in Xigaze, drove for more than 10 hours to reach the disaster zone with his staff after the earthquake, bringing around 1,500 kilograms of dumplings. He distributed free meals to affected residents and rescue workers during the day and slept in his food truck at night, CCTV reported. 

Du told the Global Times on Sunday that the dumplings were distributed quickly. He also observed that conditions in the disaster-hit area had stabilized, with food, drinking water and other basic necessities being provided through coordinated relief efforts. 

According to Han Yanyan, a senior engineer at the CENC, the epicenter of the magnitude-7.0 earthquake in Baqen County was located within the Qiangtang Block of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, which has experienced six earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 or above since 1900. No earthquakes of that magnitude have been recorded within 200 kilometers of the latest epicenter, although nine magnitude-6.0 or stronger quakes have occurred in the area. 

The earthquake represented a release of energy within the Qiangtang Block, Han said, but the release of energy does not mean the risk has passed, CCTV reported.

According to the China Earthquake Administration (CEA) on Sunday, a field investigation team discovered the surface rupture zone caused by the magnitude 7.0 earthquake in Baqen County for the first time. The rupture zone was found approximately 15 kilometers east of the epicenter and 20 kilometers from Maru Township in Baqen County.