7.8 magnitude earthquake hits Iran, hundreds feared dead
Second earthquake in a month hits GCC neighbour, tremors felt in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and India
Office workers in TECOM wait for the all clear after tremors shook Dubai following a 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Iran.
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A major earthquake, measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale, has struck Iran near its border with Pakistan, Iranian officials said on Tuesday.
A Reuters report quoted an official as saying that hundreds of people were feared to have been killed in the quake, which was felt as far away as in India and the Gulf Arab states.
The tremors sparked panic amongst residents and office workers in Delhi, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, with hundreds evacuating high-rise towers.
“It was the biggest earthquake in Iran in 40 years and we are expecting hundreds of dead,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to Reuters.
The US Geological Survey said the quake hit at around 3:00PM UAE time at a depth of 15.2 km (9.4 miles).
According to the FARS news agency, people in the Iranian city of Zahedan poured into the streets when the earthquake stuck.
All communications to the area have been cut, said the Iranian Red Crescent’s Mahmoud Mozaffar, on state television. Rescue teams have been dispatched to the affected area, he added.
“In the aftermath of this earthquake five evaluation teams from the Khash and Saravan branches were sent to the area to assess damage,” Mozaffar said.
The epicenter was in southeast Iran in an area of mountains and desert, 201 km (125 miles) southeast of Zahedan and 250 km northwest of Turbat in Pakistan, USGS said.
On April 9, a powerful 6.3 magnitude quake struck close to Iran’s only nuclear power station, killing 37 people, injuring 850 and devastating two villages.
Most of Iran’s nuclear-related facilities are located in central Iran or its west, including the Bushehr nuclear power plant on the Gulf coast. A U.S. Institute for Science and International Security map did not show any nuclear-linked facilities in south-eastern Iran close to Pakistan.
