Nine dead and 44 were injured in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan after a 6.5 earthquake struck with its epicentre in Afghanistan.
At least nine people were dead and 44 injured in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a government official said, after a magnitude 6.5 earthquake with its epicentre in Afghanistan struck late on Tuesday.
There were 19 houses that were partially damaged by the earthquake, Abdul Basit, a senior official in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government told local media on Wednesday. The quake was primarily felt in northern parts of the country, including Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Muzaffarabad, Peshawar, Haripur, Mardan, Chitral, Charsadda and others.
The earthquake also jolted different cities in Punjab, though no loss of life was immediately reported. Shocks were felt in Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad, Muzaffargarh, Sahiwal, Okara and other cities.
The US Geological Survey said the quake was centred near Jurm town in north-eastern Afghanistan in the Hindukush region and had a depth of 187 kilometres. The Pakistan Meteorological Department said the quake was a magnitude of 6.8, whereas the USGS put the magnitude at 6.5.
The earthquake also jolted the mountainous region of Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), where the resultant landslides created fear. However, no loss of life was immediately reported, according to Dawn. Rescue 1122 said landslides damaged a cattle farm in Yasin Ghizer, resulting in the death of livestock.
Health Minister Abdul Qadir Patel directed officials to put Poly Clinic and Pims hospitals on high alert. He asked the hospitals’ administration to prepare themselves to deal with any emergency. According to initial reports, cracks appeared in the Al-Janaat Mall in Rawalpindi and buildings in Islamabad’s Sector E-11.
People ran out on the streets in Islamabad as an earthquake was felt on Tuesday night. A spokesperson for the Punjab Emergency Services said Rescue 1122 officials were launching search and sweep operations across the province.
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