Another Afghan quake destroys hundreds of houses

Chahak, October 11

Another strong earthquake shook western Afghanistan on Wednesday morning after an earlier one killed more than 2,000 people and flattened whole villages in Herat province in what was one of the most destructive quakes in the country’s recent history.

Today’s 6.3 magnitude earthquake, similar to that of Saturday, was about 28 km outside Herat, the provincial capital, and 10 km deep, according to the US Geological Survey.

It triggered a landslide that blocked the main Herat-Torghondi highway and flattened 700 houses in Chahak village alone, officials said.

Doctors Without Borders, an aid group, said the Herat regional hospital received 117 injured but there was no immediate report on casualties, probably because people have taken shelter in tents this week as tremors continue to rock Herat. Taliban officials said more than 2,000 had died after the earlier quakes. Earthquakes are common in Afghanistan, having several fault lines and frequent movement among three tectonic plates. — AP