New Delhi: At least 20 people were killed after a 6.0 magnitude earthquake hit southern Pakistan early on Thursday, reported news agency AFP quoting government officials. An earthquake of magnitude 6.0 occurred today around 3:30 am in 14 km NNE of Harnai, Pakistan, the National Center for Seismology (NCS) said.
At least 15 killed in the earthquake in Southern Pakistan,” AFP quotes Disaster Management officials as saying. Many of the victims died when roofs and walls collapsed, Suhail Anwar Hashmi, a senior provincial government official, told AFP. A woman and six children were among twenty dead, he said.
“We are receiving information that 20 people have been killed due to the earthquake. Rescue efforts are under way,” provincial interior minister Mir Zia ullah Langau was quoted as saying.
Naseer Nasar, the head of Balochistan’s Provincial Disaster Management authority, told AFP that between 15 and 20 people had died, but that the toll may increase. The worst-affected area was the remote mountainous city of Harnai, in Balochistan, where a lack of paved roads, electricity and mobile phone coverage has hampered the rescue effort.
The earthquake was also felt in Balochistan’s provincial capital Quetta, according to reports.