Rescuers carry an injured person away from a landslide site after an earthquake in Deqin county, Southwest China's Yunnan province on Aug 31, 2013. [Photo/Xinhua]

KUNMING - An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale jolted Southwest China at 8:04 am Saturday (Beijing Time), according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.

Four person died, six were seriously injured seriously and 17 others from three tourist buses were trapped by quake-triggered landslides that blocked a road in Yunnan province, local authorities said.

The epicenter was monitored at 28.2 degrees north latitude and 99.4 degrees east longitude, in the area bordering the counties of Shangri-La, Deqin of Yunnan province and Derong county of Sichuan province, with a depth of about 10 kilometers, the center said.

The quake was felt strongly in the county seat of Deqin, said Liao Wencai, vice secretary of the Deqin County Committee of the Communist Party of China.

Benzilan township is believed to be the epicenter, according to local residents.

"We are heading to Benzilan. The telecommunication there has been cut off, and many residents cannot be reached by mobile phone," Liao said.

The quake and aftershocks triggered landslides, which blocked the traffic from Deqin to Benzilan, according to Atrong, deputy county head of Deqin. A resident from Benzilan told Xinhua on mobile phone that houses did not collapse, but the quake was felt strongly.

"We rushed outdoors hastily," the resident said.

Local authorities are investigating the losses and have sent tents, clothes, quilts, folding beds and mattresses to the disaster-hit area.

The quake also led to the power cut-off in Derong county of Sichuan province, but no casualties have been reported so far.

Early on Wednesday, a 5.1-magnitude quake hit the same border area, affecting more than 52,000 residents in Yunnan.