President Hu Jintao has called for immediate efforts to help with disaster relief work in southwest China, where multiple earthquakes that occurred on Friday have killed at least 50 people, according to China Central Television, or CCTV.

Hu, who is in Russia's city of Vladivostok for an annual economic leaders' meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, said authorities should work to ensure safety and protect property in the quake zone.

Premier Wen Jiabao has already left for the area.

More than 160 people were injured in multiple earthquakes that struck southwest China's Yunnan and Guizhou provinces on Friday. The quakes have also forced the evacuation of more than 100,000 people, according to local civil affairs authorities.

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