Hundreds reported dead, with the death toll set to rise. The most severely affected areas are remote. As of late Monday, communications were cut off.

 

The U.S. Geological Survey has reported a 7.5-magnitude earthquake – an extremely powerful earthquake – which struck in in Afghanistan on Monday afternoon, October 26, 2015. The quake took place 158 miles (254 km) north-northeast of Kabul, Afghanistan at 1:30 p.m. in Kabul (9:10 UTC, 5:10 a.m. CDT at North American timezones). CNN reported that its teams in Afghanistan, India and Pakistan all felt strong tremors, and CNN’s producer in Kabul, Masoud Popalzai said:

It was really bad. In 30 years of my life, it was the worst I experienced myself.

The BBC reported late in the day on Monday that more than 260 people, mostly in Pakistan, died in the earthquake and that at least 12 of the victims were Afghan schoolgirls killed in a crush as they tried to get out of their building. The BBC said:

The death toll is set to rise as the most severely affected areas are very remote and communications have been cut off.

Early in the day on Monday, USGS issued an orange alert on the quake:

Significant casualties are likely and the disaster is potentially widespread. Past events with this alert level have required a regional or national level response.

© 2014 Earthsky Communications Inc

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