At least 89 people die in China earthquake Gansu: An earthquake in the north-western Chinese province of Gansu killed at least 89 people, injured 628 and left five missing, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. The 6.6-magnitude quake struck at 7:45am local time in the city of Dingxi on Sunday, toppling buildings in the region, Xinhua reported earlier. Dingxi is located about 100 kilometres south-east of the provincial capital, Lanzhou. A woman injured in an earthquake is helped by medical workers in Minxian county in Dingxi city in northwest China's Gansu province on Monday, July 22, 2013. There have been 422 aftershocks, Xinhua said, citing Chang Zhengguo, a provincial government spokesman. The government dispatched two helicopters and 6000 rescuers, including armed police, firefighters, militiamen and local government workers, to the quake area to help with rescue efforts, Xinhua reported. The quake, which lasted about a minute, was felt in Lanzhou as well as in Xi'an, the capital of neighboring Shaanxi province, Xinhua said. The quake caused more than 5785 homes to collapse and a further 73,000 were severely damaged, Xinhua said, citing an "initial investigation." Some rescue efforts were hampered by breakdowns in communication services and blocked roads as soldiers were forced to abandon their trucks and proceed on foot, China National Radio reported. Rain is forecast in China on Monday, which may complicate rescue efforts, it said. Residents light candles that form the words "Dingxi July 22" while holding up the characters "Gansu, Dingxi, Go on! Best wishes" during a candlelight vigil for victims of the morning's earthquake that hit northwest China's Gansu province in Loudi city in south China's Hunan province. Western China has been struck by several deadly earthquakes in recent years. A quake of the same magnitude hit Sichuan province on April 20, killing at least 196 people. In April 2010 a 6.9-magnitude quake in Qinghai province killed about 2700 people. In 2008, a 7.9-magnitude quake in Sichuan left more than 87,000 people dead or missing. Chinese President Xi Jinping issued instructions to rescue crews to focus their efforts on reducing casualties from the quake, the official China Central Television reported on its account on its Twitter-like Weibo service.