NEW DELHI — A 6.7-magnitude earthquake left at least eight dead, scores more injured and houses and buildings flattened in the northeastern Indian state of Manipur early Monday morning.

The quake occurred about 18 miles west of Imphal, the state capital, around 4:35 a.m. Monday, according to the United States Geological Survey. Residents fled out of their homes into darkened streets and strong tremors were felt throughout the region, including the Tibetan region of China, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Burma, also known as Myanmar.

Manipur’s chief minister, Okram Ibobi Singh, told reporters Monday that the state was still searching for victims of the disaster and assessing the overall damage. Two teams from India’s National Disaster Response Force had been deployed to the area to help, he said. Another tremor, with magnitude 3.6, was felt about five hours later.

The deputy commissioner of the Imphal West area, Ningthoujam Geoffrey, said that three people had died in his jurisdiction and another 45 sustained injuries. Sixty houses and other buildings had also been damaged, Geoffrey said.

A major bridge and the newly-built Central Agricultural University were damaged in the quake, and bricks tumbled from the building that houses the historic womens’ market, Ima Keithel, a local landmark.

Imphal resident Leika Yumnam, who works with a local social service organization, said she was jolted from her sleep by the tremors. Frightened, she ran to check on her aging parents as furniture tumbled. Fortunately, they had already left the home to attend their morning yoga class, she said.

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“It was real bad swing. Thought death and destruction was imminent,” said Imphal resident, Ram Wangkheirakpam.

Another Imphal resident, T. Kuki, a retired bank manager, said that his home in the capital had partially collapsed, but his family escaped unscathed.

“I hope this does not set the mood for the rest of the year,” he said.

The tremor was the deadliest in India since the Nepal earthquakes in April and May 2015 that killed more than 8,000, including more than 100 in India’s border states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. The collision of two of Earth’s tectonic plates – the Indian plate and the much larger Eurasian plate – has made the Himalayan region one of the most hazardous in the world.


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