As of writing, at least 13 people have been confirmed as dead in the wake of a shocking 6.5 magnitude earthquake that rolled through the northeastern areas of Afghanistan this past Tuesday with a number of officials speaking out to warn that this number could skyrocket as additional tremor and aftershocks continued to plague the area as recently as Wednesday morning.
This most recent quake was centered around the Hindu Kush mountain range located in Afghanistan, and its power could be felt all over the more northern regions of both Pakistan and Afghanistan, inflicting extreme damage to structures and sparking a large number of rock slides that have forced its citizens to flee their homes and cities, explained a report from CNN. The movements from the quake could reportedly be registered as distantly as New Dehli, the capital of India, as reported by a post from Reuters.
Earthquake in Afghanistan kills at least 13, nine of them in Pakistan https://t.co/rbifZ0H5xj pic.twitter.com/kjfLS9Z81i
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 22, 2023
Officials in Afghanistan have reported a total of four deaths, as of writing, and close to 70 others injured since the quake, but they have warned that the number of casualties could continue to rise as the nation carries out its search and rescue operations with teams continuing to work all over the region, some parts of which are so closed off and remote that they do not even sport service for cell phones, explained one spokesperson for Afghanistan’s Ministry of Disaster Management, Shafiullah Rahimi, to CNN reporters.
In the same vein, however, Pakistani officials have reported the deaths on their end to be sitting at nine individuals, which includes two children, in the wake of a number of buildings and houses falling in on themselves out in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, explained the outlet. Additionally, the quake had another consequence in the form of collapsing the massive 295-foot-long wall around a police station in the province, explained Reuters. The total number injured within Pakistan sits currently at 44, as reported by CNN.
For most people in the area, the fresh memories of what took place as a consequence to the earthquakes in Syria and Turkey have kept them on high alert by keeping people on watch at all times of the night while camping in the streets outside of their homes with their families out of fear.
“We were watching TV at home when the earthquake happened. The first and second jolts were not too bad, but the third one was so strong that our dishes started falling from the kitchen cabinets and our TV fell from the wall,” stated 28-year-old Rouen to CNN. “I suddenly remembered the earthquake in Turkey and thought that our apartment would fall down on us if we don’t act quickly.”
This earthquake marks the first to hit the area since June of last year which resulted in the deaths of over 1,000 people.
