5.1-magnitude earthquake hits North China, tremors felt in Beijing

Beijing and several other cities in northern China were jolted after a 5.1-magnitude earthquake and moderate tremors hit Hebei province's Tangshan city on Sunday.

The quake struck Guye district at 6.38 am Beijing time, the China Earthquake Networks Centre (CENC) said.

No causalities were reported, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.

The epicentre was monitored at 39.78 degrees north latitude and 118.44 degrees east longitude, with the quake striking at a depth of 10 km, the CENC said.

Strong tremors were felt in the nearby regions including Beijing.

Two quakes, one of 2.2-magnitude and the other of 2.0-magnitude, hit the district again at 7.02 am and 7.26 am respectively.

No casualties have been reported so far.

The public is in a stable mood and the emergency response work is being carried out in an orderly manner, the city government said.

The province has launched a level III emergency response, the second-lowest in China's four-tier emergency response system for earthquakes, the Xinhua report said.

Firefighters have been dispatched to the district.

The railway department immediately launched the emergency plan to suspend passenger trains passing through the area and is organising a comprehensive inspection of railway equipment and facilities.

A 7.8-magnitude quake had jolted Tangshan in 1976 and killed more than 2,40,000 people.