LOC18:37
15:37 GMT
ISLAMABAD, Sept 2 (KUNA) -- The death toll from the earthquake that struck Afghanistan recently has climbed to 1,411 with 3,124 others injured leaving 5,412 houses destroyed, said officials on Tuesday.
Chief spokesman for the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Zabihullah Mujahid, confirmed in a statement that the earthquake in the provincial capital and five districts of eastern Kunar province of Afghanistan has climbed to 1,411 with 3,124 others injured. The affected areas included Asadabad (the center of Kunar) and Nurgal, Chawkay, Chapa Dara, Pechdara, and Watapu districts.
He also said that 5,412 homes were destroyed in the affected areas while the Afghan Red Crescent Society put the number of flattened homes at 8,000. The 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck Afghanistan on Sunday at a shallow depth of 10 kilometers causing devastation in eastern provinces of Kunar and Nangarhar provinces.
The provincial head of the disaster management, Ehsanullah Ehsan told media that the rescue operations were carried out in four badly hit villages in Kunar and efforts will now be focused on reaching more remote mountain areas. He expressed fear that more bodies might still be trapped under the rubble and there are many injured people left in the distant villages in need of evacuation to hospitals.
The World Health Organization has estimated that over 12,000 people had been affected by the quake. (end)
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