Locals stay outdoors after an earthquake was felt in Changchun, capital of northeast China's Jilin Province, Oct. 31, 2013. Two earthquakes, 5.5-magnitude and 5.0-magnitude respectively, jolted Songyuan City of Jilin Province Thursday morning. The earthquakes were felt in most parts of Jilin and some houses have been damaged. There have been no reports of deaths so far. (Xinhua/Zhang Nan)
CHANGCHUN, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- Ten people were injured when two earthquakes shook Songyuan City in northeast China's Jilin Province on Thursday morning, said local government authorities.
Those with serious injuries have been sent to local hospitals.
A 5.5 magnitude quake hit the city at 11:03 a.m. The depth of the earthquake was eight kilometers, and its epicenter was located at 44.6 degrees north latitude and 124.2 degrees east longitude, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.
A second 5.0 magnitude quake at a depth of six kilometers hit the same area at 11:10 a.m, and at least two aftershocks of 3.2 and 3.4 magnitude hit during the afternoon.
Telecommunications have been cut off in Dongbaiyinhua Village, located at the quake's epicenter, according to an officer from Qian Gorlos Mongol Autonomous County.
As of 3 p.m., over 4,100 homes had been damaged, with another 55 destroyed in Chaganhua Town. Economic losses were estimated at about 130 million yuan (about 21.33 million U.S. dollars).
"I felt three quakes, and my house was shaking badly," said Ju Shufen, a villager in Yingtu Village in Chaganhua.
"We heard sudden sounds similar to firecrackers and felt the house shaking," said Li Jinlong, a villager in Yingtu Village, adding that he found cracks on house walls after he ran out of his home.
Local authorities have relocated about 14,400 residents in Chaganhua Town.
The Qian Gorlos Mongol Autonomous County government said all kindergartens and schools will be closed from Thursday afternoon to Friday.
The earthquakes were felt in most parts of Jilin Province and some cities in neighboring Heilongjiang Province. So far, there have been no reports of deaths.
The quakes occurred in the Songliao Basin, near the site of a 5.0 magnitude quake that hit in March 2006, said earthquake experts with the Earthquake Administration of Jilin Province.
The Jilin provincial government has allotted 5 million yuan in disaster relief funds to the quake-hit region. Relief teams have been sent to the region.
A shipment of 1,000 tents is expected to be sent to the quake-hit area this evening.
