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| Scores dead after Pakistan quake | Scores dead after Pakistan quake |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| At least 160 people have been killed after an earthquake of 6.4 magnitude hit Balochistan province in south-western Pakistan, officials say. | |
| Officials in Balochistan say they expect the toll to rise. | Officials in Balochistan say they expect the toll to rise. |
| The tremor struck 70km (45 miles) north of Quetta at 0409 (2309GMT Tuesday) at a depth of 10km (6.2 miles), the US Geological Survey said. | The tremor struck 70km (45 miles) north of Quetta at 0409 (2309GMT Tuesday) at a depth of 10km (6.2 miles), the US Geological Survey said. |
| Many houses collapsed during the quake and some were destroyed in landslides that followed it, officials said. | Many houses collapsed during the quake and some were destroyed in landslides that followed it, officials said. |
| Reports say teams of army and paramilitary Frontier Corps troops are in the area, helping to rescue the injured and retrieve bodies. | Reports say teams of army and paramilitary Frontier Corps troops are in the area, helping to rescue the injured and retrieve bodies. |
| In pictures: Pakistan quake | In pictures: Pakistan quake |
| Senior army official Major General Salim Nawaz said the area remained accessible for convoys carrying relief material. | Senior army official Major General Salim Nawaz said the area remained accessible for convoys carrying relief material. |
| However, the mountainous region is thinly populated and local infrastructure is poor, making it difficult to get a clear picture of the casualties. | However, the mountainous region is thinly populated and local infrastructure is poor, making it difficult to get a clear picture of the casualties. |
| Provincial Revenue Minister Zamrak Khan told Reuters news agency that many affected areas had still not yet been reached. | Provincial Revenue Minister Zamrak Khan told Reuters news agency that many affected areas had still not yet been reached. |
| And a local television correspondent reported that some people in villages outside Quetta were angry that no rescue teams had arrived on the scene. | And a local television correspondent reported that some people in villages outside Quetta were angry that no rescue teams had arrived on the scene. |
| Mud homes | Mud homes |
| There were two tremors, striking at about 0409 and then 0510. Officials say there have also been at least three aftershocks. | There were two tremors, striking at about 0409 and then 0510. Officials say there have also been at least three aftershocks. |
| Many stunned survivors spent the rest of the night in the open, with little more than the clothes in which they had been sleeping. | |
| The worst-hit area appeared to be Ziarat, about 50km north of Quetta, where hundreds of mostly mud and timber houses had been destroyed in five villages, mayor Dilawar Kakar said. | The worst-hit area appeared to be Ziarat, about 50km north of Quetta, where hundreds of mostly mud and timber houses had been destroyed in five villages, mayor Dilawar Kakar said. |
| Some homes were buried in a landslide triggered by the quake, he said. | Some homes were buried in a landslide triggered by the quake, he said. |
| "Our rescuers are still working but we've recovered 160 bodies from various villages in Ziarat," he said. | |
| "There is great destruction. Not a single house is intact," he added. | |
| He said hundreds more people had been injured and some 15,000 made homeless. | |
| "I would like to appeal to the whole world for help. We need food, we need medicine. People need warm clothes, blankets because it is cold here," he said. | "I would like to appeal to the whole world for help. We need food, we need medicine. People need warm clothes, blankets because it is cold here," he said. |
| Another senior official in Ziarat, Sohail-ur-Rehman, said that the authorities were also scrambling to bury the dead. | |
| "Graves are being dug with excavators as we can't keep dead bodies in the open," he told the Reuters news agency. | |
| In the village of Sohi, a reporter for AP Television News saw the bodies of 17 people killed in one collapsed house and 12 from another. | In the village of Sohi, a reporter for AP Television News saw the bodies of 17 people killed in one collapsed house and 12 from another. |
| Distraught residents were digging a mass grave in which to bury them. | Distraught residents were digging a mass grave in which to bury them. |
| "We can't dig separate graves for each of them, as the number of deaths is high and still people are searching in the rubble," village elder Shamsullah Khan said. | "We can't dig separate graves for each of them, as the number of deaths is high and still people are searching in the rubble," village elder Shamsullah Khan said. |
| In the nearby town of Kawas, dozens of dead and injured were brought to a hospital in Kawas in Ziarat district. | |
| A doctor there, Mohammed Irfan, told the Associated Press news agency that the hospital was unable to cope with the number of injured. | |
| Nearby Pishin district was also hit, and at least five people died there. | |
| "We were fast asleep when the tremor struck. We grabbed the children and ran outside. The earth continued shaking for more than a minute," said resident Habibullah. | "We were fast asleep when the tremor struck. We grabbed the children and ran outside. The earth continued shaking for more than a minute," said resident Habibullah. |
| The quake was also felt in Quetta itself. | The quake was also felt in Quetta itself. |
| "There were two tremors, the second one was serious and people rushed out of their houses," said resident Amjad Hussain. | "There were two tremors, the second one was serious and people rushed out of their houses," said resident Amjad Hussain. |
| Quetta suffered almost complete destruction in an earthquake in 1935, with the death of about 30,000 people. | Quetta suffered almost complete destruction in an earthquake in 1935, with the death of about 30,000 people. |
| More than 73,000 people were killed in an earthquake in north-west Pakistan in October 2005 and almost an equal number were seriously injured. | More than 73,000 people were killed in an earthquake in north-west Pakistan in October 2005 and almost an equal number were seriously injured. |
| Are you in the area? Have you been affected by the earthquake? | Are you in the area? Have you been affected by the earthquake? |
| Send your comments using the post form below, or text 00 44 7725 800 100. | Send your comments using the post form below, or text 00 44 7725 800 100. |
| In most cases a selection of your comments will be published, displaying your name and location unless you state otherwise in the box below. | In most cases a selection of your comments will be published, displaying your name and location unless you state otherwise in the box below. |