THE confirmed death toll from a massive earthquake in southwestern China has risen to 11,921, a government official said today.

"So far the death toll from the earthquake has reached 11,921,'' Wang Zhenyao, head of the Civil Affairs Ministry's disaster relief department, told a press conference in Beijing.

The news came after a strong aftershock rocked the southwest Chinese province struggling to recover from a devastating earthquake, sparking fear among office workers who ran onto the street.

The tremor, measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale, shook Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, at around 3:10pm (1710 AEST), the Xinhua news agency said.

The US Geological Survey measured the aftershock at magnitude 5.9.

Workers rushed from their buildings after the "strongest aftershock'' since a 7.9-magnitude quake hit yesterday, leaving tens of thousands of people dead or missing in and around Sichuan.>> Full Article