6.3 magnitude quake shakes part of western Afghanistan
Earlier 2,000 people were killed in massive earthquake
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.
The magnitude 6.3 earthquake on Wednesday was about 28 kilometers (17 miles) outside Herat, the provincial capital, and 10 kilometers (6 miles) deep, according to the US Geological Survey. It triggered a landslide that blocked the main Herat-Torghondi highway, Information Ministry spokesman Abdul Wahid Rayan said. The aid group Doctors Without Borders said the Herat regional hospital received 117 injured from Wednesday’s temblor.
The group, also known by its French acronym MSF, said it sent additional medical supplies to the hospital and was setting up four more medical tents at the facility. “Our teams are assisting in triaging emergency cases and managing stabilized patients admitted in the medical tents,” MSF said on X, formerly known as Twitter. Wednesday’s quake also flattened all 700 homes in Chahak village, which was untouched by the tremors of previous days. Now there are mounds of soil where dwellings used to be.
But no deaths have been reported so far in Chahak because people have taken shelter in tents this week, fearing for their lives as tremors continue to
rock Herat. Villagers are distraught over the loss of their homes and livestock, often their only possessions, and worry about the coming harsh winter months.
