5.8 magnitude earthquake jolts Islamabad

Epicenter was in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir at a depth of 133 kilometres, says NSMC

ISLAMABAD:

An earthquake of 5.8 magnitude on Richter Scale jolted Islamabad on Monday afternoon, with no reports of any damages or casualties thus far.

The National Seismic Monitoring Centre (NSMC) in Islamabad confirmed that the epicenter was in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) at a depth of 133 kilometres.

Express News reported that tremors were felt in nearby cities, including the federal capital, causing fear among the residents.

An NSMC official stated that tremors were indeed felt in Islamabad and its surrounding areas, but as of now, there have been no reports of any damages.

Earlier this year, an earthquake of 6.8 magnitude on the Richter scale jolted parts of Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, claiming the lives of at least two people and injuring 180 others.

Read more: Earthquake tremors felt in parts of Pakistan

Recent earthquakes in Turkey and Syria have raised many questions about whether the conditions of the infrastructure we have in Pakistan are safe enough, and if our region faces a seismic catastrophe of similar magnitude or even an earthquake of low intensity.

According to the World Bank, since the earthquake of 2005, seismic risks in Pakistan have only increased. In its Fiscal Disaster Risk Assessment Options for Consideration the World Bank assesses that “if the 2005 earthquake were to occur today, it could cost nearly twice as much — $2.8 billion — in damages to residential properties alone.”