A powerful earth quake measuring 6.0 degrees on the Richter scale struck China’s already devastated Sichuan province on Tuesday. According to reports made by local authorities, at least one person was killed and five were badly wounded, CNN reported.

The tremor’s epicenter was at about 50 kilometers (30 miles) north-northwest of Guangyuan, a city close to Sichuan's border with neighboring Gansu province. The quake struck just as the Olympic torch was making its way through parts of Sichuan on Tuesday. Three days from today the Summer Games begin in Beijing. China’s capital city is located about 1,253 kilometers (778 miles) away.

The tremor jolted the area at about 1800 (1000 GMT), just a few hours after the relay made a stop in the Sichuan provincial capital of Chengdu, the last leg of its journey before it returns to Beijing for the opening ceremony. It occurred at a depth of 10km (6.2 miles), the US Geological Survey said.

According to the Chinese media, the tremors were felt in Chengdu as well.

Sichuan province and some neighboring areas are still making efforts to recover from the huge damage inflicted by the devastating 7.9-magnitude temblor in May, which killed almost 70,000 people, left 18,000 missing and 5 million homeless. Since then, thousands of aftershocks struck the region.