Two die, 70 hurt as quake hits China tea city

BEIJING, June 3 (Reuters) A strong earthquake hit a tea-making city in southwest China today, killing at least two people, injuring 70 and causing houses to collapse, Xinhua news agency said, citing an official source.

The epicentre was in the historic centre of Pu'er, in Yunnan province, and the magnitude was 6.4.

''Some houses collapsed and some people were injured in the stricken area,'' Xinhua said. ''Local residents rushed out of houses in panic.'' The Ministry of Civil Affairs had sent a rescue team and 5,000 tents to the city.

Pu'er, home of the tea of the same name, is near the border with Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam. The epicentre of the quake was 23.0 degrees north and 101.1 degrees east.

Earthquakes are common in China. In August last year, a 5.1 magnitude quake rocked Yunnan, killing two people.

In December, tremors were felt in Hong Kong and southern China when two earthquakes struck southern Taiwan.

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