Earthquake of magnitude 6.1 jolts Afghanistan

Kabul [Afghanistan]: An earthquake of magnitude 6.1 on the Richter scale jolted Afghanistan on Wednesday, the National Center for Seismology (NCS) said.

According to NCS, the earthquake in Afghanistan occurred at 6:11 am (IST) today at a depth of 10 kilometers.

Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, NCS stated, “Earthquake of Magnitude:6.1, Occurred on 11-10-2023, 06:11:56 IST, Lat: 34.71 & Long: 62.13, Depth: 10 Km, Location: Afghanistan.”

No reports of casualties have surfaced yet.
Further details awaited.

The earthquake in the Herat province of Afghanistan which occurred on Saturday has claimed more than 4000 lives and has destroyed thousands of residential houses, Khaama Press reported citing the Taliban-led ministry. Herat and surrounding regions were shaken by the magnitude 6.3 earthquake and its powerful aftershocks on Saturday.

The Taliban-led Ministry of Disaster Management of Afghanistan has announced that 1,983 residential houses have also been destroyed in 20 villages in Herat on Saturday. The Taliban has not yet broken down the number of deaths and injuries brought on by the earthquake in Herat.

On Monday, the Taliban-led ministry in a news release that 35 national and foreign search and rescue teams with 1,000 individuals were at the site of the earthquake, according to the Khaama Press report.

According to the Taliban, rescue and relief efforts for those buried under debris are still being carried out. The European Union and the World Health Organization have pledged cash, food, and medical aid to the Herat earthquake victims.