BEIJING: Rescuers in China today intensified their search for residents missing in the 7.0-magnitude earthquake which struck a mountainous region in China's southwest Sichuan province, killing at least 20 people and injuring more than 400.
Authorities evacuated more than 50,000 people, including 126 foreigners, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Twenty people have been confirmed dead while the number of injured has risen to 431, including 15 critically injured, according to local authorities.
The quake had struck Jiuzhaigou County on Tuesday.
Jiuzhaigou is a popular tourist destination in the mountains on the eastern edge of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
The epicentre of the quake was close to Jiuzhaigou National Park, a popular tourist destination in the mountains.
Rescue workers today found 16 people trapped at a scenic spot called Panda Sea in Jiuzhaigou.
Firefighters are working to secure the safety of tourists and residents stranded in areas where roads have been blocked by fallen rocks and landslides.
CCTV said 10,500 people had been moved from damaged buildings to emergency shelters.
Power supplies to 17 towns in the county has been restored. Traffic on a major highway linking Jiuzhai-Huanglong Airport to the county resumed today