The death toll continues to rise
At least 250 people are thought to have been killed and more than 150 injured following an earthquake in Afghanistan.
The quake measured 6.1 on the Richter scale, striking the province of Paktika initially but tremors were felt across more than 500km of Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, according to the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC).
#BREAKING: At least 255 people have been killed and 155 others injured in an earthquake in Barmala, Ziruk, Naka and Gayan districts of Paktika province on Tuesday night.
Local officials say the death toll could rise if the central government did not provide emergency help. pic.twitter.com/YlByfyArtG— باختر خبري آژانس (@bnapashto) June 22, 2022
A local government official told the BBC that the death toll and total number of injuries is expected to rise. The quake took place during the early hours of Wednesday morning and began at a depth of some 51km below the surface, according to the US Geological Survey.
Residents in the Afghan capital of Kabul and further afield reported “strong and long jolts” as well as “terrible” and “dangerous shaking” on the EMSC’s testimonies page, which also estimated that shaking and rumbles were was felt by approximately 119 million people across Afghanistan, Pakistan and India.
So far, there have currently been no reports of related deaths or injuries outside of Afghanistan itself, with the majority of the casualties taking place in Paktika, where Afghan media has pictured numerous houses reduced to rubble.
That being said, it is thought that the Afghanistan earthquake is the most significant and “deadliest” the region has seen in recent years, with the strongest ever recorded occurring back in 1956, when seismic activity climbed to 7.6 on the Richter scale.
🔎 Deadliest #earthquakes that occurred in recent years within 300km of #Gardēz (#Afghanistan): 11/02/1999 a M5.8 led to 70 casualties, 20/05/1992 a M6.0 led to 36 casualties, and on 16/04/2009 a M5.4 led to 19 casualties. pic.twitter.com/iEtJgtDlT1
— EMSC (@LastQuake) June 21, 2022
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