An earthquake of 6.8 magnitude shook parts of Pakistan on Tuesday, killing at least four persons and injuring several others as well as causing many buildings to collapse, authorities said.
Earthquake tremors were felt in Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Quetta, Peshawar, Kohat, Lakki Marwat, and other areas of the country. The epicentre of the earthquake was Afghanistan’s Hindu Kush region, while its depth was 180 kilometres, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD). The US Geological Survey said the quake rocked Afghanistan and parts of India as well, including the capital New Delhi, adding that the quake epicentre was 40 kilometres south-southeast of the Afghan town of Jurm.
Rescue 1122 Director General (DG) Dr Khateer Ahmad said the department received reports of roof and wall collapses from five districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa – Swabi, Chitral, Lower Dir, Mardan and Buner – and five people, including two women, injured- one in each district. “Rescue 1122 has provided first aid to all the injured and shifted them to their nearest hospital,” the Rescue 1122 DG said.
According to Radio Pakistan, PMD DG Mahr Sahibzad Khan said that earthquake tremors were felt in Islamabad, Peshawar, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Quetta, Kohat, Lakki Marwat, Dera Ismail Khan, South Waziristan and other areas of the country. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif ordered the National Disaster Management Authority and other institutions to be ready to deal with any emergency.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of National Health Services said that major government hospitals will remain on high alert in Islamabad, adding that the alert was issued to the hospitals on Health Minister Abdul Qadir Patel’s direction.
The minister also directed the administration of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences and the Federal Government Polyclinic to ensure all necessary arrangements in this regard. According to AFP, witnesses said that the strong earthquake lasting for at least 30 seconds was felt across much of Pakistan on Tuesday night. “People ran out of their houses and were reciting the Quran,” an AFP correspondent in Rawalpindi said, with similar reports coming from Islamabad, Lahore and elsewhere in the country. TV footage showed citizens out on the streets from their homes and buildings after the quake shocks were felt.
Large parts of South Asia are seismically active because a tectonic plate known as the Indian plate is pushing north into the Eurasian plate.
