M4.8 earthquake hits north China

BEIJING - An earthquake measuring 4.8 on the Richter scale jolted north China's Hebei Province at 10:22 am Monday (Beijing Time), the China Earthquake Networks Center announced.

The epicenter, with a depth of 8 km, was located at 39.7 degrees north latitude and 118.5 degrees east longitude, in the bordering area between a Tangshan City district and Luanxian County in Hebei, the earthquake monitor said.

Local people said minor tremors were also felt in Beijing and Tianjin, two megacities both within a 200-km distance to Tangshan.