中 The earthquake in Tibet continues...126 killed and 3,609 collapsed

A strong earthquake in the Tibetan Plateau on the border between China and Nepal caused more than 300 casualties and collapsed more than 3,600 homes.

China's state-run Xinhua News Agency said 126 people were killed and 188 injured as of 7 p.m. local time last night.

Local authorities say 28 seriously injured people are being treated at city hospitals, and 3,609 homes have collapsed.

The earthquake struck around 9:05 a.m. in the Xizang Autonomous Region (28.50 degrees north latitude and 87.45 degrees east longitude) adjacent to Nepal's Himalayan region.

Chinese authorities said the magnitude of the quake was 6.8, and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said it was 7.1.

It is a plateau with an average altitude of 4,259m above sea level, and it is estimated that 6,900 residents live within 20km of the epicenter.

More than 2,000 military and police forces have been dispatched to rescue and search, but the number of casualties is expected to continue to increase as major roads are cut off, making it difficult to access the site and cold waves of at least -18℃ are forecast for the next three days.

President Xi Jinping also issued a special order to minimize casualties and make all-out efforts to protect victims, and Chinese authorities decided to urgently inject relief funds worth 200 million yuan and 40 billion won in the central budget.