China earthquake map
© USGS
Four people are reportedly dead at a tourist resort in China's southwest province of Sichuan following an earthquake measuring 6.5 on the richter scale.

Chinese authorities say the earthquake measured magnitude 7, according to state media.

The earthquake hit a mountainous area some 200km (120 miles) northwest of the city of Guangyuan, and was measured at a depth of 10km (6 miles), according to the USGS.

Four people died and more than 30 people are injured, according to Reuters, which cites Sichuan television.

Update: The number of victims of the Tuesday earthquake in the Sichuan province in southwestern China has increased to 88 people, China's Central television reported.

Hundreds of people may have been killed and thousands injured in n earthquake that hit China's southwestern Sichuan province, China's National Commission for Disaster Reduction said Tuesday.




Xinhua reports that some houses collapsed in the wake of the quake, and images published by the state media site show rubble on the streets.

The earthquake's epicenter is in the Ngawa prefecture, which is mostly populated by ethnic Tibetans and nomadic herders, but is also a popular tourist destination, reports Reuters.



On Tuesday more than 38,000 people visited Jiuzhai Valley, a national park located in Jiuzhaigou County, inside the Sichuan Province, according to the Xinhua news agency.