A strong earthquake of magnitude 6.8 has struck the Hindu Kush region of Pakistan. So far, 9 people have been killed and at least 160 others have been reported injured. The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) said that a severe earthquake struck on Tuesday (March 21).

The earthquake was felt in several provinces including Islamabad, Lahar, Rawalpindi, Quetta, Peshawar.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) said the earthquake’s epicenter was 40 kilometers south and southeast of the Afghan city of Jurm, near the Pakistan-Tajikistan border.

In the evening after the earthquake of magnitude 6.8 there was another aftershock. The magnitude of the aftershock was 3.7.

AFP quoted locals as saying that the earthquake that struck Pakistan on Tuesday evening had a duration of 30 seconds.

Read more> Al-Jazeera analysis/How prepared is Istanbul for the terrible earthquake?

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Provincial Disaster Management Authority said two people died and six were injured in the collapse of roofs, walls and houses. Eight houses were partially damaged in the province.

Apart from this, casualties occurred in other provinces. Houses and other structures have collapsed.

After the earthquake, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif ordered the National Disaster Management Authority and other institutions to be prepared to deal with any emergency.

Tremors were also felt in India’s New Delhi and Kashmir. The earthquake was also felt in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan.

Most of this subcontinent lies on a junction plate between the Indian tectonic plate and the Indo-Australian plate. Large parts of South Asia are predicted to be earthquake prone.

Earlier on January 29, an earthquake of magnitude 6.3 occurred in Islamabad and on January 19, an earthquake of magnitude 5.6 struck several districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Last year, an earthquake of magnitude 6.1 struck Afghanistan and killed more than 1,000 people in the country.

Read more> Death toll in Afghanistan earthquake exceeds 1,000

In October 2005, a powerful earthquake of magnitude 7.6 struck Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Islamabad and Jammu and Kashmir. At least 100,000 people including women and children died.

Source: Geo News, Dawn

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