At least 22 people were injured in a 5.5-magnitude earthquake that struck the county of Ninglang in southwest China's Yunnan province on Sunday, local authorities said.

The earthquake struck around 3.02 pm, and its epicentre was about 60 km away from the county seat of Ninglang, in the city of Lijiang, and 3 km away from the nearest township of Yongning, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Ninglang publicity department said that a number of fallen tiles from village dwellings could be spotted at the scene.

The affected area with a seismic intensity of over six degrees spans 1,389 square km, an area with 24,000 inhabitants, the report said.

The fire brigade in Ninglang has sent four vehicles and 15 people to the epicentre to investigate the disaster.

A 60-member search-and-rescue team has also been assembled and dispatched.