An emergency rescue team is expected to fly to Tibet Tuesday to assess and aid two earthquake-stricken counties in the southwest China region, a China Seismological Bureau official said last night.

A powerful earthquake, measuring 6.7 on the Richter Scale, jolted the autonomous region's Zhongba County of Xigaze Prefecture and Coqen County of Ngari Prefecture at 7:08 am Monday. There was no immediate word of casualty by last night, according to the bureau.

"The quake-hit areas are basically uninhabited, where communications conditions are poor," said Xu Deshi, chief of the bureau's earthquake disaster emergency response department.

Included on the team are situation analysts, as well as prediction and communications experts.

The epicenter in Longger Township of Zhongba County at 30.5 degrees north latitude and 83.4 degrees east longitude is 680 kilometers from the regional capital of Lhasa.

Toinzhub, Zhongba County magistrate, said a precise report on death toll or damage will not be available for at least two weeks, since local traffic is extremely difficult. It takes a day's drive from the county seat of Zhongba to the quake's epicenter.

Lobsang Lhunzhub, head of the Longger Township, said officials are scouring villages to look for possible casualties or damage.

People in the township, situated at an altitude above 5,000 meters on the Gangdise Range, make their livings from herding. They scatter around the vast area, adding to the difficulty of gathering information, according to a Xinhua report.

The Tibet tremor coincided with an International Conference on Continental Earthquakes in Beijing, where more than 240 experts from 42 countries and regions gathered Monday to discuss emergency management and insurance.

Vice-Premier Hui Liangyu said at the meeting China has intensified its efforts to reduce seismic risks.

(China Daily July 13, 2004)