AOL

Earthquake with magnitude of 7.8 has hit western China

A strong earthquake that struck China has buried nearly 900 students in Sichuan province, state media reported.

Xinhua News Agency did not immediately give any other details or say if any of the students were thought to be alive.

It already reported that four students were killed and more than 100 students injured when the 7.8-magnitude quake knocked down two schools in neighbouring Chongqing municipality.

One person was also killed after the quake toppled a water tower in neighbouring Sichuan province, Xinhua said.

Rescue teams were dispatched to the collapsed schools, but no details were available because communication systems were down, an official in Chongqing municipality said.

Injuries were also reported in Aba prefecture of Sichuan province, where the earthquake was centred. A statement issued by the local government said the quake cracked and collapsed buildings, and damaged mountain roads.

The quake struck 57 miles northwest of the Sichuan provincial capital of Chengdu at 2.28pm (0628 GMT), the US Geological Survey (USGS) said on its website. It said the 7.8-magnitude quake was centred about 6 miles below the surface. Two aftershocks of measuring 6.0 and 5.4 struck shortly afterward in the same part of eastern Sichuan, according to the USGS.

Chinese President Hu Jintao ordered that the injured be quickly treated, saying lives were of the utmost importance, Xinhua reported. Premier Wen Jiabao was headed to the epicentre and troops with China's People's Liberation Army were being dispatched to help with disaster relief.

The quake was felt as far away as Thailand, Vietnam and Pakistan. Thousands of people evacuated buildings in Beijing, some 900 miles from the epicentre.

"I've lived in Taipei and California and I've been through quakes before. This is the most I've ever felt," said James McGregor, a business consultant who was inside the LG Towers in Beijing's business district. "The floor was moving underneath me."