Firefighters searched through rubble for survivors after a strong earthquake struck Sichuan Province in China on Thursday morning killing at least three people.

Footage shows rescue personnel lifting a large piece of broken wall that had trapped a resident of Xiaomatan Village in Longqiao, Lu County on September 16.

China’s Fire and Rescue Bureau said: ‘At 7:34, firefighters successfully rescued the trapped people at the rescue point in Longqiao Community.’

The U.S. Geological Survey recorded a magnitude of 5.4, while the China Earthquake Networks Centre measured a magnitude of 6.0. The quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometres from the surface, both agencies said.

Local government officials confirmed at least three deaths, while 59 more were injured. More than 200 houses were damaged, and 6,904 residents were evacuated.

The earthquake, which hit 120 kilometres southwest of densely populated Chongqing, triggered the second-highest response in China’s four-tiered emergency response system.