Six killed in Afghan earthquake

KABUL:

At least six people were killed and one person also remained missing, when a house collapsed in Bagrami district in central Afghanistan after a powerful 5.8-magnitude earthquake struck the Hindu Kush region on Friday.

According to the German Research Centre for Geosciences(GFZ), the quake occurred at a depth of 181 kilometres. The quake was initially measured at 5.9 magnitude but later downgraded to 5.8. The tremor was felt in the Afghan capital of Kabul.

Earlier in the day, an earthquake of magnitude 5.5 also struck the Afghanistan-Tajikistan border region, the GFZ said. In February, an earthquake measuring 5.6 on the Richter scale struck the Hindu Kush region in Afghanistan, with tremors felt in parts of Pakistan.

The fatalities came as heavy rainfall and flash floods killed at least seven people in the provinces of Nangarhar, Kandahar, Uruzgan, Herat, and Helmand during the past 24 hours. Afghan media reported that rains triggered floods and landslides, forcing temporary closure of key highways.