AMN /
At least 150 people have been killed and reports of damage are pouring in from different part of Pakistan as 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck major cities of the country, including the northern areas. Scores injured due to building collapses, landslides and stampedes.
The death toll could climb in the coming days because communications are down in much of the remote mountainous region.
Forty minutes after the first earthquake, an aftershock of 4.8 magnitude was reported in the same area. Aftershocks are expected to continue in the affected areas.
While the magnitude of today’s earthquake is close to the devastating quake of 2005, the epicentre of the 2005 quake was shallow, causing more destruction.
Earthquake tremors were also felt in Quetta and other parts of Balochistan. People came out of their houses and shops and moved towards deserted areas in the aftermath of powerful earthquake, which struck Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Military spokesman Maj. Gen. Asim Bajwa said troops had been directed “to carry out immediate rescue work in affected areas without waiting for formal orders”. Army chief Gen. Raheel Sharif flew to Peshawar to oversee rescue operations in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
Army teams fanned out for a quick assessment of earthquake damages across the country, Gen. Bajwa said.
All command military hospitals were on high alert. Helicopters were on standby.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif directed all federal, civil, military and provincial agencies to declare an immediate alert and mobilise all resources to help the quake victims.
President Mamnoon Hussain expressed grief over the loss of lives. So did celebrities who took to social media to express their anguish.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi telephoned Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and expressed condolences over the lives lost in the earthquake. He also offered assistance and cooperation to Pakistan in this hour of need.
Earlier, the Indian premier had contacted Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and shared initial damage assessment with him.