Survivors brave freezing cold after China quake kills 134

JISHISHAN, China: Survivors of China´s deadliest earthquake in years huddled in makeshift aid tents despite freezing temperatures on Wednesday, too scared to return to homes made dangerous by the disaster.

State broadcaster CCTV said at least 134 people were killed in northwestern Gansu province and neighbouring Qinghai after a shallow tremor on Monday night damaged thousands of buildings.

Almost 1,000 were injured across the two provinces, according to state news agency Xinhua, while CCTV said 13 were still missing in Qinghai as of 4:00 pm (0800 GMT) Wednesday. The quake was China´s deadliest since 2014, when more than 600 people were killed in southwestern Yunnan province.

AFP reporters saw families sheltering in makeshift tents built from wooden poles and tarpaulins outside the Majiahe mosque near the epicentre in Gansu´s Jishishan county, with outdoor stoves and blankets salvaged from homes their only sources of warmth.

A woman taking refuge in one of the tents outside the mosque told AFP her family was afraid to return home. “We can´t get inside anymore, it´s too dangerous,” she said, declining to give her name. “All the bricks and tiles inside could fall down at any time.” Residents crowded around stoves in large tents set up on a basketball court by the local government in a nearby township.