Death toll of 6.8-magnitude quake in China reaches 88

Beijing: A total of 88 people have been killed, and 35 remain missing after a 6.8-magnitude earthquake jolted Luding county in China's Sichuan province earlier this week, local authorities said on Friday.

The rescue headquarters said that among the deaths, 50 were killed in the Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture and 36 others in the city of Ya'an, reports Xinhua news agency

According to the Sichuan provincial public security department, its rescue forces have searched and rescued more than 1,500 people trapped in the quake that struck on Monday and evacuated 5,782 others to safety.

The department has mobilised 1,695 police officers and auxiliary personnel to join the earthquake relief effort, and sent more than 2,300 others to help out with the traffic in the quake-affected areas.

The playground of a dchool has been transformed into a helipad that can accommodate two helicopters at the same time.

Unmanned aerial vehicles and 5G-connected ambulances have also been deployed to assist with rescue operations.

According to the State Grid Sichuan Electric Power Company, power supply has been restored to nearly 80 per cent of affected users in Luding.

The company said the earthquake tripped the operation of 57 power transmission lines and shut down 10 sub-stations, disrupting the electricity supply to about 40,000 users.