Russian rescuers ready to assist China with quake aftermath

Russian rescuers were ready to assist quake-hit China with searching operation, emergency authorities said Sunday.

"An Ilyushin Il-76 with 71 rescue personnel from the Siberian regional center will fly out to China within hours," press service of the Siberian regional emergencies center told local media.

In accordance with an agreement between the two countries, Russian will send rescue detachments, a mobile hospital and humanitarian aid cargoes to the earthquake-struck Chinese region, the Emergency Situations Ministry's spokesperson Irina Rossius told Itar-Tass news agency.

A 7.0-magnitude quake occurred at 8:02 Beijing Time on Saturday morning and its epicenter, with a depth of 13 km, was monitored at 30.3 degrees north latitude and 103.0 degrees east longitude.

According to the latest statistics, the magnitude-7 quake, which hit southwestern Chinese province of Sichuan at 8:02 a.m. Saturday Beijing time, has left at least 186 dead.

Twenty-one people are reported missing, 11,393 others have been injured, more than 1.5 million people have been affected.

Special report: 7.0-magnitude earthquake jolts Ya'an