VIENTIANE, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- Two people were slightly injured and 17 buildings were damaged after a 6.1 magnitude earthquake hit Hongsa district, Xayaboury province in northern Laos on Thursday.

Director of the Hongsa district office Lae Onsomboun said an initial assessment showed that 13 houses and four temples were damaged in the district, according to local daily Vientiane Times on Friday.

"Many of the houses have broken walls. Two people sustained minor injuries and were taken to hospital. We are now assessing the damage but have yet to receive reports from some villages," he said.

According to the Meteorology and Hydrology Department under the Lao Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, there were 18 earthquakes in total, with two being particularly strong, with the epicenter in Hongsa district, some 240 km north of Lao capital Vientiane.

The quake jolted Hongsa and the border area between northern Thailand and Laos at 6:50 a.m. local time on Thursday with a depth of 10 km, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Bounphak Inthapanya, deputy governor of the Xayabury Province, told local reporters that all the districts of the province might be affected by the earthquake with Hongsa district being worse hit. "Some buildings were damaged," he said, immediately after the quake on Thursday morning.

The quake was felt in every district of the province but most strongly in central Hongsa district. The shockwaves were felt much further afield and the Lao authority warned people, especially those living close to the affected area, to be on alert and listen out for any information issued by the government.

Local villager Dedmany Ngaosavath in Xayabury Province told Xinhua that he was awakened by the tremors of the quake.

"My kid was also awake. She asked me whether there was early morning construction outside and I told her it was an earthquake," he said over the phone on Thursday morning.

The quake has triggered an immediate suspension to the power generation of Hongsa Power Company's thermal power plant, according to Lao News Agency (KPL). A staff member said the power plant itself did not sustain any damage because it was built to high standards and only parts of the outer walls fell.

The Laos-China Railway Co. Ltd., in charge of the construction of the railway running through northern Laos, told Xinhua on Thursday that the railway construction was not affected by the earthquakes.

The quake was also felt by residents of many adjacent provinces in Thailand including Loei, Chiang Mai, Khon Kaen, Chiang Rai, Phrae, Kalasin, Lampang and Udon Thani.

In Vietnam, people living in apartment buildings in some areas of its capital of Hanoi felt light tremors and many city residents reported that they felt their furniture shaking. Enditem

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