Lead

At least three people were injured on Saturday after two earthquakes of 5.2- and 4.3-magnitude jolted a vast area of Balochistan, including Barkhan district, officials said. The quakes struck the same region that had experienced a 5.1-magnitude tremor a day earlier, damaging homes and prompting residents to abandon their houses.

Later on Saturday, a 5.9-magnitude earthquake originating in Afghanistan's Hindu Kush region sent light to moderate tremors across Pakistan, shaking cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, and the federal capital.

Coverage Comparison

Dawn reported that the twin earthquakes in Balochistan occurred on Saturday morning, with the first of 5.2-magnitude striking at a depth of 19 kilometres, with its epicentre 52 kilometres north-east of Barkhan, according to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) and the National Seismic Monitoring Centre (NSMC). The United States Geological Survey (USGS), however, put its magnitude at 5.4, with a depth of 10 kilometres, striking at 8:06am. A second 4.3-magnitude tremor followed, with its epicentre in the same area, at a depth of 42 kilometres according to NSMC, while USGS recorded a 10-kilometre depth for the tremor that struck at 5:45am.

Separately, the Hindu Kush earthquake — reported as magnitude 5.9 by the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), with a depth of 178 kilometres — was felt in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Mansehra, Shangla, Swat, Chakwal, Abbottabad, Taxila, Haripur and Buner, according to Dawn. The Punjab Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) reported tremors in Lahore, Faisalabad and Attock. The Punjab Rescue 1122 spokesperson Farooq Ahmad said no reports of damage or injury had been received.

Key Claims

  • At least three people were injured in Balochistan as a result of the Saturday quakes: two labourers were hurt when the roof of a shop collapsed in Musakhail district, and a man named Fazal sustained injuries when his house collapsed northwest of Musakhail's Kingri area, as reported by the PDMA.
  • Across Friday and Saturday, the district administration reported that the first tremor on Friday affected the village of Chaap, partially damaging 80 to 90 houses and leaving six people with minor injuries. On Saturday, another earthquake hit Tehsil Kingri, damaging 25 to 35 houses and injuring 10 to 13 individuals.
  • Preliminary joint assessments by the NDMA indicated approximately 110 to 125 houses were partially damaged, while 18 to 19 people suffered minor injuries over the two days. No fatalities had been reported as of Saturday evening.
  • The NDMA stated that the Hindu Kush earthquake originated at a depth of 178 kilometres, which allowed the tremors to spread over a wide area while limiting the intensity of ground shaking at the surface. Experts attributed the event to the continued northward movement of the Indian Plate beneath the Eurasian Plate.
  • On Friday, a 5.1-magnitude earthquake jolted Balochistan, with its epicentre 60 kilometres northeast of Kohlu, felt in the Zhob, Barkhan and Rakhni areas, according to the PMD. The USGS recorded a 5.2-magnitude quake north-northeast of Barkhan at a depth of 10 kilometres.
  • Earlier in the week, a 5.4-magnitude earthquake jolted parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Islamabad, with its epicentre in Afghanistan's Hindu Kush region at a depth of 215 kilometres, as per the PMD.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed deep grief over the losses in Musakhail and directed rescue operations, according to Dawn. The PDMA and local administration rushed to the affected areas and launched rescue operations after receiving reports of the earthquakes. According to the local administration, cracks appeared in the walls of mud houses, and a large number of people abandoned their houses and erected tents.

In Afghanistan, authorities said checks for casualties and damage were ongoing following the Hindu Kush earthquake, as reported by Dawn.