Temblor kills dozens in northern part of country

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Originally published Saturday, April 13, 2002

KABUL, Afghanistan -- An earthquake shook northern Afghanistan on Friday morning, killing more than 30 people and injuring about 100, aid officials said.

The quake, which struck at 8:30 a.m., had a magnitude of 5.8, according to the U.S.-based National Earthquake Information Center. It was located near the site of a devastating March 25 quake that killed up to 1,000 people and left tens of thousands homeless.

Most of the casualties Friday occurred in the village of Doabi, 90 miles northeast of the capital, Kabul, said Hugues Belloc, an official with the French aid group ACTED.

"Many buildings collapsed and a lot of people were buried under the rubble," Belloc said by satellite phone from nearby Pul-i-Khumri.

A defense official in the region, Gen. Khalil, said at least two people were dead and six injured in Nahrin, 35 miles to the west. Nahrin was hard hit in the March 25 quake, and many residents are still living in tents. Like many Afghans, Khalil uses only one name.

Previous quake

Northern Afghanistan has been shaken by a series of quakes in the past month and a half. A March 3 quake measured 7.2 and was the strongest in the Hindu Kush mountain region since 1983.

Ahmad Shouab, aide to a local commander in Pul-i-Khumri, said several shops and buildings collapsed in the Friday quake.

The French aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres, or Doctors Without Borders, sent two medical teams to the area from the northern city of Kunduz, U.N. spokeswoman Rebecca Richards said.

Another team carrying U.N. and other aid officials left Kabul by helicopter Friday to assess the situation, Richards said.

Friday's quake was felt in Kabul, as well as the Tajik capital of Dushanbe and the Pakistan border city of Peshawar. No casualties or destruction were reported in these cities.

Northern Afghanistan is at the heart of a desperately poor region already suffering the effects of years of drought and war.

The Olympian Copyright 2002

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