At least 24 people were killed and hundreds others injured in a 5.8-magnitude earthquake that jolted Yingjiang County in southwest China's Yunnan Province around noon today. The county government updated the figures at 7:20 p.m. local time, saying 201 people were injured, with 33 in serious condition. Director of Yingjiang government press office, Zhao Yunshan said the earthquake toppled 583 houses or apartments, mainly in the county seat near the border with Myanmar. Witnesses reportedly said people were buried under debris and part of a supermarket and a hotel caved in. The earthquake, the largest of more than 1,200 minor tremors over the last two months in the region, is believed to have caused serious damage and loss. According to the China Earthquake Networks Center, the epicenter of the quake, with a depth of 10 kilometers, was monitored at 24.7 degrees north latitude and 97.9 degrees east longitude. Three aftershocks, measuring up to 4.7 degrees on the Richter Scale, jolted the county within 10 minutes of the first tremor. Nearly 1,000 soldiers have been sent to join the rescue operation.