BEIJING (Reuters) - 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.

The death toll stood at 126 as of Tuesday evening. The quake struck the city of Xigaze, the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama, the second-highest figure in Tibetan Buddhism.