Chinese officials say more than 120 people were killed in an earthquake that struck just before midnight Monday in a mountainous area in the country’s northwest, with as many as 500 others reported injured. The epicenter was in rural Jishishan County in the Gansu Province, one of China’s poorest regions that’s home to many Muslim groups. Footage shared by Chinese state TV showed villages split and homes were turned to rubble by the quake. The tremor was recorded as having a magnitude of 5.9 by the U.S. Geological Survey and spurred about 10 aftershocks. Rescue efforts are underway in the region but have been hindered by freezing weather as cold as -4 degrees Fahrenheit and disrupted power and water supplies. Rescue authorities told the BBC they fear the death toll will only grow as trapped people succumb to the bone-chilling cold.
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