By Shishir Prashant 
PrashantNews
A powerful magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck northern Tibet in China on Thursday night, injuring at least two people and damaging homes in villages near the epicentre, media reports said.
One more earthquake of 5.2 magnitude hit the same Nagqu area in the Tibet Autonomous Region at 8.42 pm, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said.
The 7.o earthquake occurred at 20.03 pm (IST) in a sparsely populated, high-altitude area of Nagqu, the USGS said adding its depth was 18 km.
Media reported that at least two people were injured in villages near the epicentre and that several houses sustained structural cracks. Tremors were strongly felt in the affected area, prompting residents to flee their homes. Emergency response teams were dispatched, while a series of aftershocks measuring between magnitude 3 and 4 were also recorded.
The affected region lies at an elevation of around 4,864 metres and is sparsely populated, potentially complicating emergency response and damage assessments.