Earthquake of Magnitude 5.8 Strikes Afghanistan; Tremors Felt in Delhi-NCR, Parts of North India – News18

An earthquake of 5.8 magnitude on the Richter scale occurred in Afghanistan which shook parts of north India, including Jammu and Kashmir and Delhi-NCR on Saturday night. The tremors hit the mountainous Hindu Kush region of the neighbouring country at 9:31 pm.

According to the National Center for Seismology (NCS), the epicentre of the earthquake was located at 36.38 degrees north on the latitude and 70.77 degrees east on the longitude in the Hindukush region of Afghanistan.

There are no immediate reports of any damage.

Residents rushed out of their homes in panic following the tremor in the national capital. “The quake hit twice at around 9:30 pm,” said Preeti Shankar, who resides in a high-rise apartment in Noida on the eastern fringes of Delhi.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, in a tweet, said, “Earthquake tremors have also been felt in Delhi. Hope everyone is safe.”

“Hey Delhi people, We hope you all are safe! For any emergency help, dial 112,” the Delhi Police said in a tweet.

Earlier in the day, an earthquake of magnitude 5.2 hit Jammu and Kashmir’s Gulmarg. The NCS said it occurred at 8:36 and the epicentre was 129 km below the surface of the earth, about 184 km from Gulmarg. This was the third quake to hit Jammu and Kashmir in the day.

Earlier the region was jolted by quakes occurring in Pakistan and in the Hindu Kush region at 8.36 am and 10.24 am. The two quakes, in that order, were measured 4.8 and 5.2 on the Richter Scale.

Meanwhile, the earthquake also jolted parts of Pakistan with no loss of life or property reported so far. According to National Seismic Monitoring Centre in Islamadad, the epicentre of the earthquake of 5.8 magnitude was reported near Tajikistan and Afghanistan border in the Hindukush mountain range. The depth of the quake was 196 kilometres and the tremor was felt at Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Peshawar and other cities.

Pakistan is often hit by earthquakes of varying intensity.

The deadliest 2005 earthquake near Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir left more than 74,000 people dead.

(with inputs from PTI)