An earthquake with a 5.5 magnitude struck south China's Yunnan province early January 27 morning in the border area of Mile and Qiubei counties, resulting in no deaths and only two injuries.

The local seismological bureau reported that some houses and roads in the remote area had sustained damage, but no further details were available because communication access to the region is limited.

The 4.55 a.m. (2055 GMT Wednesday) tremor is unlikely to result in large economic losses as few people live in the area, said Que Yunchang, a spokesman with the bureau.

The China Seismological Bureau said that the epicenter of the quake was located at 24.2 degrees north latitude and 103.6 degrees east longitude. The quake caused losses to 2,060 households there.

Officials with the local electricity bureau said that there have been no signs of power outages.

Six rescue groups have been sent to the quake-hit area, headed by Chen Xunru, deputy provincial governor.

The lowest temperature in the area January 27 is predicted to be 1 to 2 degrees Celsius, and the meteorological station forecasts a possible moderate to heavy snowfall in the next two days, when temperatures are to drop to minus-2 degrees Celsius.

The two counties, located in southwest part of the province, are situated in a mountainous area mostly inhabited by Miao, Zhuang, Hani and Yi ethnic groups.

Two quakes with magnitudes of 5.9 and 6.5 struck Yao'an County in the province's Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture on Jan. 15, killing five, injuring 1,544, and leaving more than 90,000 homeless.