2010 Yushu earthquake
  Gyêgu
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| Date | 14 April 2010 |
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| Magnitude | 6.9Mw or 7.1Ms |
| Depth | 10 km (6 mi) |
| Epicenter | 33°16′16″N 96°37′44″E / 33.271°N 96.629°ECoordinates: 33°16′16″N 96°37′44″E / 33.271°N 96.629°E |
| Areas affected | People's Republic of China |
| Casualties | 2,698 confirmed dead 12,135 injured 270 missing |
The 2010 Yushu earthquake struck on April 14 and registered a magnitude of 6.9Mw (USGS, EMSC) or 7.1Ms (CEA, CENC). It originated in Yushu, Qinghai, China, at 7:49 am local time. According to the Xinhua News Agency, 2,698 people have been confirmed dead, 270 missing, and 12,135 injured of which 1,434 are severely injured. The epicenter was located in Rima village (日玛村/日麻村), Upper Laxiu township (上拉秀乡) of Yushu County, in remote and rugged terrain, near the border of Tibet Autonomous Region. The epicenter is about 30 km from Gyêgu town or Jyekundo, the seat of Yushu County, and about 240 km from Qamdo. The epicenter was in a sparsely populated area on the Tibetan plateau that is regularly hit by earthquakes.
The 12th century Thrangu Monastery and surrounding villages were severely damaged and many monks and villagers were killed.
Qinghai lies in the northeastern part of the Tibetan Plateau, which formed due to the ongoing collision of the Indian Plate with the Eurasian Plate. The main deformation in this area is crustal shortening, but there is also a component of left lateral strike-slip faulting on major west–east trending structures such as the Kunlun and Altyn Tagh fault systems that accommodate southeastward translation of the Tibetan area.
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