Magnitude 4.9 quake hits Yunnan

KUNMING - A magnitude 4.9 earthquake hit Ludian County in southwest China's Yunnan province at 7:11 pm Wednesday, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.

The epicenter was monitored at 27.07 degrees north latitude and 103.36 degrees east longitude. The quake struck at a depth of 10 km, the center said.

Residents living near the epicenter said the tremor was "quite strong" when it struck.

"The things I put on my water dispenser fell on the ground," said a resident in Longtoushan Township.

Li Shanyun, Communist Party of China secretary for the township, is worried about possible landslides and falling rocks caused by the earthquake.

"We are trying to verify if there are any casualties," Li said.

A magnitude 6.5 earthquake hit Ludian in 2014, killing 617 people and leaving tens of thousands of houses collapsed or severely damaged.