International Courant
KABUL – A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck western Afghanistan on Saturday morning, america Geological Survey (USGS) mentioned, adopted by 4 main aftershocks with the epicenter close to the area’s largest metropolis.
The USGS mentioned the epicenter was 40 km (25 miles) northwest of the town of Herat and was adopted by a 5.5 magnitude aftershock.
An AFP journalist within the metropolis mentioned residents and shopkeepers fled buildings when the earthquake struck round 11am, however there have been no experiences of casualties or structural harm.
“We have been in our workplace… All of the sudden the constructing began shaking, the plaster began falling down and the partitions began to crack. Some partitions and elements of the constructing collapsed,” 45-year-old Bashir Ahmad advised AFP.
“I can not contact my household. Community connections are misplaced. I am too apprehensive and scared. It was horrible,” he mentioned.
Crowds of girls and kids stood within the large streets of Herat, distant from tall buildings, within the moments after the preliminary earthquake and aftershocks, which lasted for about an hour.
Lots of of fatalities have been attainable, based on a preliminary report from the USGS.
“Vital casualties are doubtless and the catastrophe is doubtlessly widespread. Previous occasions at this alert degree required a response at a regional or nationwide degree,” the report mentioned.
USGS beforehand reported the magnitude of the primary earthquake as 6.2. It had a shallow depth of solely 14 km, it mentioned.
Herat – 120 km east of the border with Iran – is taken into account the cultural capital of Afghanistan.
It’s the capital of Herat province, house to an estimated 1.9 million inhabitants, based on 2019 World Financial institution knowledge.
In June 2022, greater than a thousand folks have been killed and tens of 1000’s left homeless after a magnitude 5.9 earthquake – the deadliest in Afghanistan in virtually 1 / 4 of a century – struck the impoverished province of Paktika.
In March 2023, 13 folks have been killed in Afghanistan and Pakistan by a magnitude 6.5 earthquake that occurred close to Jurm in northeastern Afghanistan.
Afghanistan is commonly hit by earthquakes, particularly within the Hindu Kush mountains, which lie close to the intersection of the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates.
Afghanistan is already within the grip of a dire humanitarian disaster, with the widespread withdrawal of overseas assist for the reason that Taliban returned to energy in 2021. AFP
Magnitude 6.3 earthquake shakes main metropolis in western Afghanistan; epicenter close to the town of Herat
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