Up to 100 feared dead in Afghanistan earthquake
An earthquake in Afghanistan triggered a landslide which buried mud homes in a mountain village and rescuers feared at least 80 people had been killed, provincial officials said on Tuesday.
Two quakes with magnitudes of 5.4 and 5.7 struck mountainous northern Afghanistan on Monday, bringing a slide of mud and rocks down on the remote settlement.
The governor of Baghlan province said 22 homes were buried but the bodies of only two women had been recovered. Twenty people were in hospital with injuries.
-
Afghan national police stand at the site after an earthquake hit Baghlan province, north of Kabul in Afghanistan
"We don't think we will be able to take out the other bodies," Governor Abdul Majid said.
A rescue team only had one bulldozer to try to clear the rubble, he said.
"We will hold a prayer for the victims."
The United Nations said it was working with authorities in the area to determine what aid was needed.
Afghanistan's north is prone to earthquakes. A 2002 quake in the same province killed more than 2,000 people.
Comments