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Major earthquake strikes Iran

April 16, 2013

A strong earthquake has struck Iran, with preliminary reports pointing to at least 40 people dead. Cities across the Gulf region and India have also reported tremors.

https://p.dw.com/p/18Gff
A DW map showing the quake's location

A 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck Iran near its border with Pakistan on Tuesday at 10:44 UTC, according to the US Geological Survey. Iran's semi-official ISNA new agency put the magnitude slightly lower, at 7.7, calling the tremor a "massive quake."

Exact figures regarding the number of those killed are still unclear. Iranian state television initially reported that at least 40 people had been killed, but an Iranian official from the country's crisis center later said that there had been no fatalities. A different official, quoted by Reuters, put the death toll in the hundreds.

The USGS initially reported that the quake occured at a depth of about 15.2 kilometers (9.4 miles) in southeast Iran near the city of Saravan, though it later drastically revised this figure, saying the tremor struck 82 kilometers below the ground. Saravan is some 50 kilometers from the border with Pakistan.

Pakistani state television and radio differed slightly in its initial reports, but seemed to concur that at least five people had been killed on its side of the border. Some buildings in major cities like Karachi were evacuated as a precaution.

Tremors also shook Dubai and Bahrain, where officials ordered the evacuation of high-rise and other quake-prone structures.

New Delhi also reported strong tremors, but there were no immediate reports of injuries.

Tuesday's earthquake came less than a week after a 6.1-magnitude earthquake claimed dozens of lives in the southern town of Kaki, Iran. It was the most powerful quake to hit the region in 40 years.

mz/msh (AFP, Reuters)