Death toll from China earthquake rises to 149, with 2 still missing

BEIJING (AP) — The death toll from China’s most powerful earthquake in years has risen to 149, with two people still missing after the tremor hit northwestern parts of the country last week. The 6.2-magnitude quake struck a remote mountainous area between Gansu and Qinghai provinces on Dec. 18, reducing homes to rubble and triggering heavy mudslides that inundated two villages in Qinghai province. State broadcaster CCTV said Monday the death toll in Donghai city in Qinghai has risen by one, to 32, and rescuers were still searching for two missing people. In neighboring Gansu, authorities had reported 117 dead. Nearly 1,000 were injured and more than 14,000 homes were destroyed in China’s deadliest earthquake in nine years.