The death toll from an earthquake that scarred a scenic region of southwest China's Sichuan province rose to 23 on Friday as authorities found three more bodies. 


The Aba prefecture emergency response office said in a statement that the bodies were found inside a bus in a river valley in Zhangzha. It did not give more details about what had happened to the vehicle. 


The statement said at least 493 were injured in Tuesday's 6.5-magnitude earthquake, which struck Jiuzhaigou, a popular tourist destination with a national park, forested mountains and over 140 lakes that has been recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site. 


More than 70,000 people have been evacuated from quake-hit towns and villages, state media reported. 


The tremor evoked memories of a devastating 8.0-magnitude earthquake in the region in 2008 that left 87,000 people dead or missing

Source: NNA