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Quake jolts Central Asia

Kabul, February 25
An earthquake measuring up to 6.7 on the Richter scale rocked Central Asia today, panicking residents from Kabul to New Delhi and prompting many to flee their homes.

Seismologists said the earthquake’s epicentre was in northern Afghanistan near the Tajikistan border.

No casualties have been reported from the quake, which was felt in India, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan.

The Director General of the Meteorological Department in Pakistan Qamaruz Zaman said the epicentre of the quake was 300 km north of Peshawar in Afghanistan’s Hindu Kush mountain range. The quake measured 6.0 on the Richter scale, Mr Zaman said, adding that it was followed by a series of aftershocks.

“It is a deep-rooted earthquake,” Mr Zaman told AFP, adding that its depth was 200 km below the surface. “Such earthquakes cause less damage on the surface.”

In Pakistan, the quake lasted about one minute and severe jolts were felt in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Peshawar, Chitral, Gilgit and several other northern towns.

Northeast Afghanistan is notoriously quake-prone. On February 4, 1998 a quake measuring 6.4 hit the area, killing 4,500 persons. Another quake on May 30 the same year measured 7.1 and killed 5,000.

An Afghan opposition spokesman said preliminary reports from several district centres in Badakhshan and Takhar did not speak of casualties or damages.

However, he said this did not mean damage and casualties could be ruled out. “There are some remote districts which takes people several days on horseback to get the news out.”

A Taliban official speaking from Kandahar said the shocks were not felt in the ruling militia’s southern stronghold.

In Dushanbe, a Tajik emergency service official said tremors as strong as 4.0 on the Richter struck Tajikistan’s capital Dushanbe and the Uzbek capital Tashkent.

TOKYO: Two earthquakes jolted Japan on Sunday, one in the northern part of the country and another near Tokyo, but there were no reports of damage or injuries, police said.

The first temblor, with a preliminary magnitude of 5.8, hit north-eastern Japan at 0324 IST today. It occurred just below the seabed off coast of Fukushima prefecture, about 240 km northeast of Tokyo, the Meteorological Agency said.

Separately, a magnitude 4.3 quake shook Tokyo and nearby cities about seven hours later at 1035 IST. It was centered 20 km below the seabed in the Pacific Ocean about 100 km southwest of the Japanese capital.

BEIJING: Three persons were killed and 63 injured in an earthquake that hit a remote prefecture in south-west China, official media reported on Sunday.

The quake, measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale, which hit the Sichuan province on Friday also left over 6,000 residents in the Ganzi Tibetan autonomous prefecture homeless, Xinhua news agency reported from the provincial capital Chengdu.

NEW DELHI: An earthquake of moderate intensity measuring 6.7 on the Richter scale, shook northern parts of the country in the morning forcing people to rush out of their houses in panic.

The quake, which occurred at 7.52 am, had its latitude at 36.5 degree north and 70.6 degree east, the Meteorological Department here said.

In Delhi, the fire service said there were no immediate reports of any loss of life or property due to the quake.

The tremors were felt in parts of Rajasthan, including Jaipur and Ajmer.

The earthquake comes precisely a month after the devastating quake that hit the Kutch region of Gujarat claiming thousands of lives. Agencies

Tremors send people into panic
Tribune Reporters, Agencies

Chandigarh, February 25
An earthquake of moderate intensity rocked most of northwest region this morning, sending people outdoors in panic.

The tremor was felt at 7.54 a.m. and lasted eight seconds. It rattled doors and windows in Chandigarh, areas of Haryana, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh. However, no loss of life and property has been reported.

SRINAGAR: Srinagar and its adjoining areas were rocked by an earthquake this morning. The tremors which occurred at 7.55 a.m. shattered doors and windows. People came out of their houses in panic despite chilly weather outside.

There was, however, no immediate report of loss of life or damage to property, the police said.

SHIMLA: Tremors were felt at several places in Himachal Pradesh this morning around 7.50 a.m. according to official reports.

Tremors were felt at Shimla, Dharamsala, Solan and at several other districts.

The epicentre of the earthquake is reported to be Afghanistan where its intensity is reported to be 6.5 on Richter scale while it was measured at 4.5 at Dharamsala and less at other places.

DHARAMSALA: Kangra valley today experienced tremors of earthquake at 7.57 a.m. measuring between 4.5 and 5.00 on the Richter scale forcing people to rush out of their houses in panic, Seismology Department sources said.

The earthquake which lasted for nearly one minute forced people to rush out of their houses in panic at the town, at Kangra, Palampur and other areas of the valley. Mr R.S. Negi, in charge of the Central Recording Station of Seismology Network (CRSSN) at Naddi, said tremors were experienced besides Kangra valley, Chamba, Manali and Shimla.

A report from Kulu said the entire Kulu valley was rocked by an earthquake at 8 a.m. this morning which lasted 30 seconds. Five to six shocks of moderate intensity were felt in the region. People came out of their houses. However, no loss of life and property has been reported.

PALAMPUR: A tremor measuring 4.5 on Richter scale rocked the Palampur region of Himachal Pradesh at 7.56 a.m. this morning. People rushed to the streets in many parts of the town.

An expert of the Seismological Department said the tremor was centered 200 km north of Dharamsala and its epicentre was located near Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir.

The local SDM, Mr Tek Chand, told newsmen that no loss of life or property had been reported so far. However, unconfirmed reports said a number of kutcha houses in upper areas of Palampur and Baijnath had developed cracks. A cow shed near Dadh also collapsed.