5.12.08 7.8M Earthquake in Sichuan China

Sichuan University student takes video at 2:29pm in dorm.

The 2008 Sichuan earthquake shook Wenchuan County, Sichuan province of the People's Republic of China at 14:28:04 local time (06:28:04 GMT). It had a magnitude of 7.8 Mw according to the State Seismological Bureau of China and United States Geological Survey. The earthquake was felt as far away as Beijing and Shanghai, where office buildings swayed with the impact and Vietnam capital Hanoi.The closest major city from the earthquake's epicenter is Chengdu.

The epicenter was at 31.084°N, 103.267°E, in Wenchuan County, Ngawa Prefecture, 90 km northwest of Chengdu, Sichuan, China, with its main tremor so far occurring at 14:28:04 local time (06:28:04 am GMT) on Monday 12 May 2008. Early reports of the earthquake's Richter scale magnitude ranged from 7.6 to 8.0. Five major aftershocks ranging in magnitude from 4.0 to 6.0 were recorded within two hours of the main tremor.

Office workers in Chengdu reported a "continuous shaking for about two or three minutes", with many people rushing outside.

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