Bangladeshis \\\'safe\\\' in quake-hit Yunnan

Bangladesh mission in Kunming has found all Bangladeshis living in areas ‘under its jurisdiction’ safe after a 6.5 magnitude earthquake struck south-western China. The quake killed at least 381 people and left 1,881 injured in a remote area of Yunnan province. Bangladesh’s foreign ministry quoting its Kunming mission said the local Chinese foreign affairs office ‘has not yet received any information’ about casualty among foreigners in the quake-hit areas. ‘No information about casualty of Bangladesh nationals has been recorded or reported anywhere,’ the ministry said in a media release today. The earthquake also caused the collapse of thousands of buildings, including a school. The US Geological Survey said the quake registered at a shallow depth of less than 1 mile (1.6 km). Chinese state media said it was felt most strongly in Yunnan as well as in the neighbouring provinces of Guizhou and Sichuan. This region of China is frequently struck by tremors, with one killing more than 1,400 in the same part of Yunnan in 1974. A quake in Sichuan in 2008 killed almost 70,000, according to bdnews24.com.