Six injured and dozens of homes destroyed in earthquake in western China

Around 200 rescuers were dispatched to the epicentre (Wang Xudong/Xinhua via AP)

A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck a sparsely populated area of China’s western Xinjiang region early on Tuesday, injuring six people and damaging or collapsing more than 120 homes in freezing cold weather, authorities said.

The quake was the latest in a series of seismic events and natural disasters to hit the vast country’s western regions.