A moderate 4.9 magnitude earthquake strikes Xinjiang in China early Thursday, with tremors recorded at a shallow depth of 10 km | Representational Image
Xinjiang [China], March 5: In a post on X, the National Centre for Seismology said that the quake occurred at 05:45:44 IST. The tremor occurred at a depth of 10 kilometres.
“EQ of M: 4.9, On: 05/03/2026 05:45:44 IST, Lat: 43.55 N, Long: 86.12 E, Depth: 10 Km, Location: Xinjiang,” NCS wrote.
Why shallow earthquakes are more dangerous
Shallow earthquakes are generally more dangerous than deep earthquakes. This is because the seismic waves from shallow earthquakes have a shorter distance to travel to the surface, resulting in stronger ground shaking and potentially more damage to structures and greater casualties.
China prone to seismic activity
China’s geographical position makes it highly prone to frequent seismic activity. It is located between the two largest seismic belts, the circum-Pacific seismic belt and the circum-Indian seismic belt.
Squeezed by the Pacific plate, the Indian plate and the Philippine plate, the seismic fracture zones are well developed in this region.
Earthquake history in China
Since the beginning of the 20th century, more than 800 earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater have occurred in China. Earthquakes have struck almost all provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions, except for Guizhou, Zhejiang, and Hong Kong.
Since 1949, more than 100 destructive earthquakes have occurred across Chinese provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions, 14 of which are in East China.
These earthquakes have caused the deaths of more than 2,70,000 people, representing 54 per cent of the total death toll caused by natural disasters in China. The earthquake-stricken districts cover an area of 300,000 square kilometres, with more than 7 million rooms destroyed.
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Experts highlight ongoing risks
Experts note that earthquakes and other natural disasters continue to pose major challenges to China even in peaceful times.
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