Earthquakes jolt northwest China

A series of earthquakes measuring 3.1 to 5.0 on the Richter scale jolted northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region today, but there were no reports of damage or injuries.

A series of earthquakes measuring 3.1 to 5.0 on the Richter scale jolted northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region today, but there were no reports of damage or injuries.

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An earthquake measuring 5.0 on the Richter scale jolted Hoxud County of Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture of Bayingolin in Xinjiang region at 2:20 pm Beijing Time, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.

The epicenter, with a depth of seven km, was monitored at about 42.1 degrees north latitude and 87.5 degrees east longitude, the center said in a statement.

The epicenter is about 188 km southwest to the regional capital of Urumqi. A magnitude 3.6 earthquake, with a depth of eight km, struck the same point six minutes later, Xinhua news agency quoted a separate report from the center as saying.

Earlier in the day, the center recorded another 3.1-magnitude earthquake which jolted the nearby Turpan prefecture at 7:10 am, the report said.