Magnitude 7 Earthquake Kills at Least 16 in Tibet and Collapses Hundreds of Homes

A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck China's Tibet region on Thursday, Oct. 22, killing at least 16 people and collapsing hundreds of homes in and around the northern city of Nagqu, Chinese official media reported, according to the Associated Press and Euronews.

At least 339 homes and 20 livestock sheds collapsed, the Nagqu media office said. The AP reported 32 people injured, 11 of them seriously, citing the media office. Euronews later reported that the number of injured had risen to 54, citing official media.

China's state broadcaster CCTV called it the strongest earthquake to hit the region in five years, both outlets reported.

Where the Tibet Earthquake Struck

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake hit at 10:33 p.m. local time, or 10:33 a.m. Eastern, with its epicenter 191 kilometers (about 119 miles) east-northeast of Nagqu, in a sparsely populated, high-altitude area of northern Tibet. The USGS put the depth at 18 kilometers (about 11 miles), while China's official Xinhua News Agency, citing the China Earthquake Networks Center, put it at 10 kilometers, the AP reported.

Nagqu lies more than 300 kilometers (186 miles) north of Lhasa, Tibet's capital.

Rescue Efforts and Aftershocks

Rescue teams from police and fire departments were building tents to house people displaced by the quake, the AP reported. More than 1,600 people have been deployed for search and rescue, and emergency supplies including 1,000 prefabricated housing units, 3,000 tents, folding beds and winter clothing have been delivered to the area, according to Euronews.

The USGS recorded at least seven aftershocks ranging from magnitude 4.3 to 5.2, Euronews reported. Rockfalls forced authorities to close a section of National Highway 317 to all but emergency, rescue and official vehicles, and railway authorities halted train service through the area as a precaution. Xinhua reported that communication was cut in some of the hardest-hit areas, according to Euronews.

Intermittent snow is forecast across the earthquake zone over the next three days, which could complicate rescue efforts, Euronews reported.

Image: Grassland on the Tibetan Plateau (file photo), by Luo Shaoyang, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.

Yossi Schmidt, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, The Digital Free Press

Hold Everyone Accountable.

Sources: Associated Press via ABC30, "A 7.0 earthquake hits China's Tibet, killing 16 and injuring 32" (Oct. 22, 2026): https://abc30.com/story/70-earthquake-hits-chinas-tibet-killing-16-injuring-32/19969904/ ; Euronews, "At least 16 people killed as earthquake rocks China's Tibet region" (Oct. 23, 2026): https://www.euronews.com/2026/10/23/magnitude-7-earthquake-strikes-tibet-killing-at-least-16-people-and-destroying-hundreds-of ; U.S. Geological Survey, M 7.0 - 191 km ENE of Nagqu, China (Oct. 22, 2026): https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us6000u43g