SHANGHAI -- The Chinese government has ramped up search and rescue operations in southern Tibet after Tuesday's magnitude 6.8 earthquake killed at least 126 people and injured 188 as President Xi Jinping ordered all-out efforts to minimize casualties.
The powerful earthquake struck Dingri County in the Shigatse region, home to 800,000 people, destroying 3,600 homes and cutting off electricity supply. The territory in China's western region is near neighboring countries Nepal and Bhutan, and it is also a stopping point for climbers who scale Mount Everest, the world's highest peak.
