Earthquake and Landslide Hit China: 2 Dead, 4 Missing
A 4.7 magnitude earthquake struck Changning County in Yibin, Sichuan Province on Monday morning, while a separate mudslide and landslide disaster in Fengqing County, Yunnan Province has claimed two lives and left four people missing. No casualties have been reported from the earthquake so far, according to Xinhua News.
Twin Disasters Strike Southwestern China
The earthquake struck at 8:26 AM Beijing time on August 24, with an epicenter at 28.33N, 104.98E and a focal depth of 5 kilometers, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center. Tremors were felt in Chengdu, Leshan, Luzhou, Chongqing, and Guiyang. A Changning County official said there was shaking but no reports of casualties had been received so far, with disaster verification efforts underway, as People’s Daily reported.
The Sichuan Earthquake Agency activated a Level 4 emergency response and dispatched the Zigong Earthquake Monitoring Center Station to the epicenter. Communications and power supplies in the affected area remain normal.
Meanwhile, in Yunnan Province, continuous heavy rainfall from 1:00 AM to 8:00 AM on August 23 triggered a mudslide in Anshi Village, Fengshan Town, Fengqing County, where 101.8 mm of rain fell, leaving two people missing. A separate landslide in Shuiqing Village, which received 106 mm of rainfall, left four people missing. By 5:00 PM on August 23, rescuers had found two of the missing from Shuiqing Village — both were confirmed dead by medical personnel, according to Xinhua News.
Fengqing County activated a Level III emergency response, coordinating rescue forces including emergency management, public security, fire, water affairs, transportation, natural resources, and medical personnel. The Ministry of Natural Resources activated a Level IV geological disaster defense response for Yunnan and dispatched a working group to the scene.
False Earthquake Warning Sparks Controversy
The earthquake was further complicated by a significant controversy involving a false warning. The Chengdu High-tech Disaster Reduction Institute issued a 7.7 magnitude earthquake warning through Honor and Vivo phones and Xiaotiancai smartwatches — far exceeding the actual 4.7 magnitude. The Sichuan Earthquake Agency publicly condemned the institute for misusing the name of the China Earthquake Early Warning Network, noting that it had terminated the institute’s third-party authorization for emergency earthquake information services on July 22, 2026.
The official China Earthquake Early Warning Network produced a 5.4 magnitude warning and distributed it through WeChat mini-programs, TV, service terminals, and mobile phones. The agency urged the public to follow official release channels.
The Chengdu High-tech Disaster Reduction Institute later apologized for the error, calling it the largest magnitude deviation in its 15-year history of earthquake warning services since September 2011. The institute’s warning magnitude sequence ranged from 7.7 at the fifth second after the quake, converging to 3.9 by the seventeenth second. In a full statement, the institute acknowledged that some deviation is inevitable in early warning systems because warnings are issued while the earthquake is still occurring, but pledged to investigate the cause and improve its technology and services.
Regional Seismic Activity and Ongoing Risks
The Yibin area has experienced significant seismic activity in recent months. On August 7, a 4.9 magnitude earthquake struck Gao County, Yibin, killing one person and injuring six. According to the China Earthquake Networks Center catalog, 257 earthquakes of magnitude 3 or above have occurred within 200 km of the latest epicenter in the past five years, as Lianhe Zaobao reported.
The Yunnan disaster highlights the vulnerability of mountainous regions in southwestern China to geological disasters triggered by heavy rainfall. The Yunnan Provincial Department of Natural Resources and Yunnan Meteorological Bureau jointly issued a Level II geological disaster meteorological risk warning on August 23, covering multiple areas across the province.
What’s Next
Search and rescue operations continue for the remaining missing persons in Fengqing County. The Fengqing County government stated it will prioritize the search and rescue of missing persons while conducting dynamic hazard investigation, resettlement of affected residents, and prevention of secondary disasters, fully implementing the “1262” early warning response mechanism.
The false earthquake warning raises important questions about regulatory oversight of third-party warning services. This is the second major controversy for the Chengdu High-tech Disaster Reduction Institute in 2026, following public backlash in July over its app’s VIP fee structure and forced pop-up ads. The Sichuan Earthquake Agency’s termination of authorization in July raises questions about enforcement of regulatory decisions, and the incident underscores the importance of relying on official channels for earthquake warnings.