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By M. Alex Johnson, Staff Writer, NBC News
A 5.9-magnitude earthquake struck central China on Monday, killing 47 people and injuring hundreds of others, official state media reported.
The U.S. Geological Survey told NBC News the quake hit in Gansu province about 8 miles east of Chabu at 7:45 a.m. Beijing time (7:45 p.m. ET Sunday). The USGS recorded it at 6 miles deep and said it caused shaking in a rural region where the infrastructure isn't seismically resistant.
The official Xinhua news agency?said in a bulletin Monday afternoon tat 47 people were dead and that at least 270 others were injured.
Many homes in the region collapsed, Xinhua reported. Widespread communications and power interruptions were reported, along with mudslides and landslides.
About 5,600 residential buildings were damaged, the Beijing-based China Daily newspaper reported Monday afternoon. Some train service was suspended, and hundreds of armed police were mobilized to repair a damaged part of the main highway linking Lanzhou, the provincial capital, to Minxian county, it reported.
Xinhua said the quake was felt in the neighboring cities of Dingxi, Longnan and Tianshui, as well as Lanzhou, more than 100 miles away. About 19,000 people live in the area that was subject to the strongest shaking, it said.
It was followed an hour and a half later by a 5.6-magnitude quake at about the same depth,?the USGS reported.
Based on the history of earthquakes of this size in rural China, there could be "significant casualties," the USGS said.
The official China Meteorological Administration warned that heavy rain was possible in southeastern Gansu province Monday night and into Tuesday. It said the rain could hamper rescue efforts and urged residents to be alert to flash flooding in areas damaged by the earthquake.
NBC News' Li Le in Beijing and Sarah Burke contributed to this report.
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This story was originally published on Sun Jul 21, 2013 9:22 PM EDT
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