At least 50 people are dead after a series of earthquakes jolted a mountainous part of southwestern China, triggering landslides.

Damage is preventing rescuers from reaching outlying areas and communications are disrupted.

The quakes started with a magnitude 5.6 tremor, striking rural, agricultural areas of Yunnan (yoo-NAN') and Guizhou (gway-zhoh) provinces.

Chinese and U.S. government seismologists say an equally big quake came more than 30 minutes later, followed by more than 60 aftershocks.

China Central Television is showing roads littered with rocks and boulders, and pillars of dust rising over hillcrests. Local officials say hardest hit was Yiliang County in Yunnan, where most of the deaths occurred.