Tremors of an earthquake epicentred in Afghanistan’s Hindukush mountain range were felt in India, Afghanistan and Pakistan on Monday afternoon. Its intensity was 7.5 on the Richter scale. Quake claimed 24 lives in Afghanistan and at least 130 in Pakistan. PM spoke to Afghanistan President and Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif, and offered assistance to help them deal with the aftermath of the tragedy.
Tremors arising from an earthquake epicentred in Afghanistan were felt in these 3 countries in Asia on Monday afternoon.
While Afghanistan and Pakistan has seen substantive loss of life and property no such reports have surfaced in India so far.
Afghanistan is the worst affected. According to the US Geological Survey, the quake’s epicentre was located near Jurm in northeast Afghanistan in the Hindukush mountain range, 250 kilometres from Kabul and at a depth of 213.5 kms. Its intensity was pegged at 7.5 on the Richter scale. Residents of Kabul say this was the most severe earthquake that they have experienced. Several deaths have been reported in Kabul and adjoining areas in Afghanistan. The number of those injured are likely to rise. Houses and roads have been damaged in several places. There is large-scale disruption of mobile services too.
Reports of extensive damage have emerged from Pakistan too. Several people have been injured. Eight people, including women and children, died in Swat, while four died in the Bajaur tribal region after buildings collapsed in the area. Many persons are reported to have died in Peshawar city due to a building collapse. Several buildings collapsed in other parts of Pakistan too.
The earthquake sent ripples across Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi-National Capital Region, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Rajasthan.
The tremors lasted for nearly a minute during which residents and office-goers dashed out for safety.
In Delhi, people moved out of their homes and offices…to be under the open skies. They say the tremors were of high intensity. The impact of the tremors was felt more in high-rises. Delhi metro trains were halted briefly.
They are no reports of any loss of life or property.
In Jammu and Kashmir, the impact of the earthquake was more than in other parts of India. The flyover at Jehangir Chowk in the heart of Srinagar developed a crack. In north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, trees were uprooted and roads damaged in several areas.
According to officials, an Army bunker collapsed following tremors in Sopore, 55 kms from Srinagar leaving two Army personnel injured. A part of the Bhimgarh fort in Reasi district collapsed under the impact of the tremors. Damage to property was reported in some areas in Udhampur too.
Tremors were felt in many districts of Punjab.Many houses in Ludhiana developed cracks.
Relief and rescue agencies were alerted immediately after the earthquake.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi directed an urgent assessment of the damage caused by the quake and offered assistance to Afghanistan & Pakistan.
He spoke to Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani and expressed his sympathies & condolences over the damage caused by the earthquake.
PM tweeted ‘President @AshrafGhani shared with me his initial assessment of the damage. I offered all possible assistance.
President @ashrafghani told me due to the quake a school building collapsed & children lost their lives. I was very pained to hear of this.
When President @ashrafghani was telling me about the school, my mind went back to a similar tragedy in Anjar, Kutch in 2001. Felt very sad.’
While India was largely unaffected by the earthquake neighbouring countries were impacted more.
In the wake of frequent quakes in the region in the last few months people need to be exercise caution to minimise their impact.