Powerful aftershocks hit southwest China

Beijing: At least three powerful aftershocks hit southwest China's quake area on Thursday, killing one elderly person and injuring more than a dozen, the official Xinhua news agency said.

More than 69,000 people have been confirmed dead and some 18,000 are still listed as missing over the two months after a 7.9-magnitude earthquake hit the mountainous province of Sichuan on May 12.

A 5.6-magnitude aftershock struck Qingchuan county in northeastern Sichuan in the early hours of Thursday, killing a 60-year-old, Xinhua said.

At least four people were injured in the adjacent Ningqiang county in Shaanxi province, including a man who jumped from the second floor of a hotel and suffered fracture on his left arm.

It was the first of two pre-dawn aftershocks that caused landslides and cut off some roads.

Another aftershock, measured 6.0 on the Richter scale, hit the same area at 3:09 pm local time and was felt in places as far as the southwestern metropolis of Chongqing.

Chinese officials have warned of an arduous reconstruction task, which includes housing millions of displaced and impoverished residents and rebuilding the local economy.