August 31, 2013 Earthquake: Benzilan, Yunnan Province, China

Reference #13456:

Tectonic Summary

Seismotectonics of the Himalaya and Vicinity

Seismicity in the Himalaya dominantly results from the continental collision of the India and Eurasia plates, which are converging at a relative rate of 40-50 mm/yr. Northward underthrusting of India beneath Eurasia generates numerous earthquakes and consequently makes this area one of the most seismically hazardous regions on Earth. The surface expression of the plate boundary is marked by the foothills of the north-south trending Sulaiman Range in the west, the Indo-Burmese Arc in the east and the east-west trending Himalaya Front in the north of India.

At least 5 people killed, 21 injured in Deqen, Yunnan and Derong, Sichuan and 9,200 displaced in Yunnan. About 600 residential units collapsed, 55,500 damaged, communication interrupted, power cut off and rockslides occurred in the epicentral area. Felt at Dali, Yunnan.

Reference #10732:

Earthquake near China's Shangri-La kills at least five. BEIJING, August 31 - An earthquake on Saturday hit a remote part of southwest China near the popular tourist area of Shangri-La, killing five people and injuring 24 more, state media said. The earthquake in Yunnan province on the border with Sichuan province sparked landslides, blocked roads, trapped tourist buses, cut off communications and toppled or damaged tens of thousands of homes in the mountainous area. The driver of a tourist bus died and three tourists were injured as falling rocks smashed into the vehicle, said the official Xinhua news agency. Three other tourist buses were trapped by landslides triggered by the quake and aftershocks, Xinhua said. In total, Xinhua said 24 people including seven tourists were injured. It did not reveal the nationality of the wounded tourists. The 5.8-magnitude quake, which struck at 8:04 am (0004 GMT), was centred on Yunnan's Benzilan town, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said. It was about 10 kilometres (six miles) deep. The quake toppled 600 homes and damaged more than 55,000 others, forcing over 9,000 local residents to relocate, Xinhua said.

Reference #1250:

3 deaths, 50 injured, 155 million USD total damages