Guangxi Earthquake

Overview

At 12:21 a.m. local time on May 18, 2026, a magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck Liunan District of Liuzhou City in China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, with its epicenter near Taiyangcun town, 16 kilometers from the city center, at a depth of 8 kilometers. The quake was felt widely across the region and prompted an immediate emergency response. Thirteen buildings collapsed in the affected zones, killing two people who were trapped in rubble. A 91-year-old man was rescued alive after being trapped under debris for nearly 11 hours, representing the final rescue of the operation. Four people were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. Chinese authorities evacuated more than 7,000 residents from earthquake-affected neighborhoods, setting up temporary shelters across 99 sites. The State Council earthquake relief headquarters and the Ministry of Emergency Management activated a Level-IV emergency response and dispatched a work team to coordinate relief efforts on the ground. A total of 51 fire and rescue vehicles and 315 personnel were mobilized alongside rescue dogs, life-detection equipment, drones, and heavy machinery to systematically search collapsed structures. The national government dispatched 10,000 pieces of central disaster relief supplies — including tents, folding beds, blankets, and tables — to support displaced residents. The earthquake struck during an already difficult period for Guangxi, which was simultaneously experiencing catastrophic flooding from a separate multi-week heavy rainfall event that had claimed additional lives in the province. The on-site search and rescue operation concluded within 24 hours, with authorities transitioning to post-disaster reconstruction, structural safety assessments of remaining buildings, and long-term housing assistance for the thousands of evacuated residents.