M6.1 earthquake near Kaqun, Xinjiang

What happened

A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck 83 km S of Shache, China on 5 Mar 1956, 07:12 UTC at a depth of 15 km.

Earthquakes of this size are classed as Strong. Can cause damage in populated areas up to tens of kilometres away. This was a shallow earthquake, which tends to be felt more strongly at the surface.

The nearest town in our records is Kaqun, about 49 km away in Xinjiang, China.