CHENGDU, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- There have been no reports of casualties or toppled houses after a 5.1-magnitude earthquake shook Xichang City in southwest China's Sichuan Province on Wednesday afternoon, local authorities have said.

The quake hit Xichang, Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, at 4:29 p.m., according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.

The provincial government of Sichuan said the quake had not disrupted road or water traffic in the city of Xichang. Some rural houses reported slight damage and several counties suffered poor communication.

Residents in Xichang said they heard muffled sounds and saw goods falling off supermarket shelves as the quake hit. Slight tremors were also felt in several towns in the prefecture.

The provincial seismological bureau said it had sent a team to the quake-hit region.