18 Killed, Over 300 Houses Collapse After Magnitude-7 Earthquake In Tibet

At least 18 people were killed and dozens others injured when a strong 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck China's remote Tibet region on Thursday. The earthquake struck at 10:33 pm (1433 GMT) and the epicentre was located in a mountainous area about 190 kilometres (120 miles) east-northeast of Nagqu, and 390 kilometres northeast of the regional capital Lhasa, the US Geological Survey said.

China Central Television (CCTV), citing local officials, put the number of injured at 46, 11 of them seriously, with 339 houses collapsed or damaged.

Initial inspections found that 339 houses had collapsed, and more than 300 police officers were deployed to assist with the ongoing rescue operations.

Videos posted online showed workers running out of restaurants and objects falling off shelves at supermarkets when the quake struck.

JUST IN: At least 16 dead, 32 injured and hundreds of homes collapsed after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck Tibet, China, officials say. https://t.co/2nTZ5BL4CU

— Scope Report (@ScopeReport_) October 22, 2026

In January 2025, at least 126 people were killed in an earthquake in Tibet's rural Tingri county.

The earthquakes come weeks after devastating flash floods killed over 1,400 people in the Nepal-Tibet border region in August. The deadly floods originated near the Nepal-Tibet border and swept homes and buildings in the northern and central parts of Nepal. 

Meanwhile, another earthquake of magnitude 5.2 hit China at 8.29 pm (IST), around 505 km north-north-west of Arunachal Pradesh's Pangin at the depth of 15 km, said the NCS.