A strong earthquake hit Afghanistan on Tuesday evening, but tremors were felt in many neighboring countries. The epicenter of the earthquake, measuring 6.6, was in Afghanistan.
The death toll rose from nine to 12. Close to nine people died in Pakistan, whereas three died in Afghanistan. Also, the quake left at least 160 people injured in Pakistan and 44 injured in Afghanistan. The epicenter of the earthquake was 180 kilometers from Pakistan, said the country’s Meteorological Department.
According to Bilal Faizi, a spokesman for Pakistan’s emergency services, over 100 individuals were brought to hospitals in the Swat valley area of the country’s northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in a state of shock. Phone lines have been impacted, and in Pakistan, landslides have obstructed the highway in the worst-affected Swat region.
When the earthquake struck, many families were out of the house enjoying Norwuz, the Persian New Year.
But according to AFP, French international news agency, the harm so far has been less than anticipated, according to emergency personnel in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. However, relief and rescue efforts are likely to be slowed down by the remoteness and difficult terrain of the affected regions.
Many people in the affected areas endured the cold after the earthquake to spend the night outside out of concern for aftershocks. When they felt the shaking, some hurried barefoot out of their houses.
In Pakistan, earthquake tremors were felt in Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Quetta, Peshawar, Kohat, Lakki Marwat, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Sialkot, Kot Momin, Madh Ranjha, Chakwal, Kohat and Gilgit-Baltistan areas.
Strong tremors were felt in northern India including the capital, Delhi-NCR region. Reports say that the earthquake was felt in Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, India, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, and Tajikistan.
As the earthquake tremors persisted for several seconds in the northern Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Punjab, people fled their homes.
