Authorities moved more than 45,000 people in earthquake-hit Tibet to shelters in a massive rescue operation at the foot of the Himalayas as they wound down the search in a high-altitude environment where the odds of survival were always slim.

The magnitude 7.1 quake, which struck at a depth of 10 km (six miles), according to data from the US Geological Survey, was also felt in Nepal and parts of India, which neighbour Tibet. Videos published by China's state broadcaster CCTV showed destroyed houses and brought down buildings in Tibet's holy Shigatse city,