A powerful earthquake measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale struck eastern Afghanistan early on June 22, resulting in at least 280 fatalities, according to information from state media reported by BBC.
Previously, the Associated Press cited officials stating that 255 people had died.
The epicenter of the earthquake was located at a depth of 51 km, approximately 44 km from the city of Khost, near the Pakistan border, as reported by the United States Geological Survey.
Mohammad Nassim Haqqani, head of the Taliban’s disaster management agency, stated that the majority of the casualties were in Paktika Province, with 25 fatalities in Khost Province and 5 in Nangarhar Province. He also mentioned that officials are still assessing the total number of casualties.
A collapsed house in Paktika Province. (Photo: BBC/Afghanistan Government News Agency).
Bilal Karimi, deputy spokesperson for the Taliban government, tweeted: “A severe earthquake has shaken four districts of Paktika Province, killing and injuring hundreds of our compatriots and destroying dozens of homes.” “We urge all relief forces to send personnel to the scene immediately to prevent further disasters.”
There have been no reports of damage or casualties in Pakistan as of yet.
A resident in Kabul, Afghanistan, reported feeling “strong and prolonged shakes.”
Approximately 119 million people in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and India felt the tremors, according to the Mediterranean Seismological Center (EMSC) on Twitter.
Afghanistan’s Bakhtar News Agency reported that rescue teams and helicopters have been dispatched to the site.
On Twitter, the director-general of Bakhtar News Agency stated that 90 houses were destroyed in Paktika, and dozens of people are believed to be trapped under the rubble.
In Pakistan, residents felt the tremors in the capital, Islamabad, and other areas in eastern Punjab Province. Taimoor Khan, spokesperson for the disaster management agency, reported damage to homes near the Afghan border, but it is unclear whether it was caused by rain or the earthquake.
