Ma Zhonghai evaluates the damage caused by an earthquake to his house at Queergou Town in Hutubi County, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Dec. 8, 2016.(Photo: Xinhua/Zhao Ge)
A Xinhua reporter in Urumqi said his office building shook for more than 10 seconds.
Drink cans and bottles fell from shelves in a supermarket in Urumqi.
Local schools in Hutubi suspended classes on Thursday afternoon.
Meanwhile, 24 trains have been affected as local railway authorities suspended rail services out of safety concerns.
A safety check was conducted on railway facilities between Urumqi and Kuytun, according to the Urumqi Railway Bureau.
The quake's epicenter was in northern Hutubi, a sparsely-populated region at an altitude of 1,500 meters. More than 70 percent of houses in Hutubi and the neighboring regions of Manas and Shihezi are government-subsidized earthquake-proof properties.
