An earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale hit Hejing County, Bayingolin Autonomous Prefecture of Mongolian Nationality in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Saturday evening.

The quake struck at 8:46 PM (Beijing time). The epicenter was at 42.7 degrees north and 83.9 degrees east, and at a depth of 10 km, in the sparsely-inhabited Tianshan Mountains, according to the regional seismograph network.

Nearby counties and Korla City all felt the tremor.

No casualties were reported. Residents in Hejing County said "the intensity was not strong."

The local authorities had begun inspecting the damaged houses. Experts and technicians from Xinjiang and Korla earthquake bureaus were heading for the affected areas.

(Xinhua News Agency September 1, 2008)