Authorities moved more than 45,000 people in earthquake-hit Tibet to shelters in a massive rescue operation at the foot of the Himalayas as they wound down the search in a high-altitude environment where the odds of survival were always slim.

More than 14,000 rescue workers have arrived in Tibet to continue the search for survivors after a strong earthquake killed at least 126 people in a remote part of western China.

China has almost doubled its tally of injured in Tibet's deadly earthquake as rescuers widened a search on Friday for survivors in a remote county near the foothills of the Himalayas, despite dwindling hopes for survival.