By Wang Guoyin, Zhang Yinbo, Li Xiaolong, Hu Zheng and Ji Wenzhi

URUMQI, Jan. 21-- A 6.4-magnitude earthquake in Jiashi County in Kashgar Prefecture of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region left one killed and two wounded as of 9 a.m. on January 20. Some houses, transmission lines and transportation facilities were also damaged.

Officers and soldiers of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) and People’s Armed Police (PAP) at all levels in Xinjiang jointly fought on the front line of disaster relief, sparing no effort to investigate dangerous housing conditions, evacuate the affected people, repair public infrastructure, and prevent earthquake-induced secondary effects.

A professional rescue force consisting of 80 military members dispatched from the PAP Xinjiang Contingent started disaster relief, evacuation and other work in Xikeerkule Town on the early morning of January 20. After that, they quickly transferred to other eight quake-hit villages in Wolituogelake Town and assisted local authority in repairing the roads and municipal infrastructures.

To prevent earthquake-induced secondary effects, the PAP Kashgar Detachment has organized a rescue team to investigate the damage condition of the dam of Xikeer Reservoir and reinforced the slight cracks found in the dam on January 20. They also conducted safety inspections on key facilities such as schools, hospitals, and water conservancy projects, and organized professional forces to disinfect the surrounding environment to prevent major infectious diseases and public health emergencies brought by the earthquake.

Also on the early morning of January 20, an army reserve regiment in Xinjiang dispatched two batches of rescue units to the affected area. They used individual video and drone to exchange live scenes of the quake-stricken area to the duty room, and launched search and rescue operations in time. Up to now, they have searched more than 360 houses and cleared 15 streets and more than 1,000 meters of collapsed walls.

As of press time, the rescue operation is still ongoing and the post-disaster reconstruction has been in full swing and implemented in an orderly fashion.