When a magnitude-5.5 earthquake jolted Pingyuan County in east China's Shandong Province, the local railway staff on duty felt intense shaking. Instinctively, they sent signals to apply emergency brakes to all seven trains operating on the rails under their jurisdiction. The earthquake, which occurred approximately 10 kilometers below the surface, struck Pingyuan County at 02:33 on Sunday, as reported by the China Earthquake Networks Center.