An earthquake measuring 5.6 on the Richter scale shook Mianzhu City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, at 2:03 a.m. Tuesday, the China National Seismological Network reported.

The earthquake, with the epicenter monitored at 31.5 degrees north and 104.1 degrees east, was also felt in five other areas of Sichuan: Chengdu, Deyang, Mianyang, Guangyuan and Aba, according to the Sichuan Provincial Earthquake Bureau Tuesday.

The bureau warned of the possibility of aftershocks, including some measuring 5 on the Richter scale.

The publicity department of Mianzhu City Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) said as of 11:30 a.m., the quake caused minor damage to more than 8,000 homes in the city, and eight people suffered slight injuries, including one woman worker in downtown Mianzhu whose hands were injured while she attempted to open a door when the earthquake struck.

Mianzhu is one of the areas hardest hit in the 8-magnitude quake on May 12 last year.

The Emergency Response Office of the Sichuan Provincial Government, together with Sichuan Provincial Earthquake Bureau, dispatched a special working group that joined workers at the epicenter an hour after the quake to inspect the damage.

They found no visible damage in Zundao and Jiulong townships of Mianzhu, where housing was rebuilt after last year's quake, except for some cracks in old and reinforced homes.

The quake toppled three houses in Tumen Township, also in Mianzhu, while telecommunications, water and power supplies and transport were disrupted in Qingping and Tianchi, two other townships in Mianzhu.

Luo Yingguang, head of publicity with Mianzhu City Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), confirmed Tuesday a road to Qingping Township collapsed in the quake, stopping transport, as well as disruptions to power and telecommunications, and a water pipeline leak.

Water conservancy infrastructure such as reservoirs and protective embankments, and some small bridges and culverts in the city suffered minor damage in the quake.

Repairs to the road were underway, said Luo.

A magnitude-8 magnitude earthquake struck southwest Sichuan Province and neighboring areas on May 12 last year, leaving more than 80,000 people dead or missing.

(Xinhua News Agency June 30, 2009)