A powerful earthquake has struck western Afghanistan, near the Iranian border, leading to devastating consequences as hundreds are feared dead and thousands more injured. The Afghanistan earthquake, with a magnitude of 6.3, struck on Saturday near the city of Herat, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.
Initially, the Taliban government reported a death toll exceeding 2,000 but later clarified that this number also included injured individuals. The quake has wreaked havoc on at least 12 villages in the region, with powerful aftershocks adding to the chaos.
Survivors have recounted the terrifying moments as buildings crumbled around them. Rescue teams have been working tirelessly through the night, struggling to find survivors buried beneath the rubble.
With thousands of people injured, the situation has overwhelmed Afghanistan’s already strained medical facilities. In response, the United Nations and other organizations have begun rushing emergency supplies to the affected areas.
The Afghanistan earthquake’s epicenter was located approximately 40 kilometers (25 miles) northwest of Herat and struck around 11:00 local time on Saturday. The worst-hit communities consist of remote villages with mud structures, where the initial tremors caused houses to collapse, burying those inside.
Bashir Ahmad, a resident of Herat, described the devastation, saying, “In the very first shake, all the houses collapsed. Those who were inside the houses were buried, and there are families we have heard no news from.”
The public health minister of the Taliban government is visiting Herat to assess the scale of the impact. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that at least 465 houses were flattened by the Afghanistan earthquake.
Footage from Herat Central Hospital revealed casualties receiving treatment outside the main building, highlighting the sudden and overwhelming demand for emergency care. Scenes of destruction in Herat’s Injil district depicted blocked roads, hampering rescue efforts.
Student Idrees Arsala, who experienced the Afghanistan earthquake firsthand, shared, “The situation was very horrible; I have never experienced such a thing.” He was the last to safely evacuate his classroom as the quakes began.
Herat, often considered the cultural capital of Afghanistan, is located 120 kilometers (75 miles) east of the Iranian border and is home to an estimated 1.9 million people.
Afghanistan, situated near the junction of the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates, frequently experiences earthquakes, especially in the Hindu Kush mountain range. This latest disaster serves as a grim reminder of the region’s vulnerability to seismic activity. In June of the previous year, the province of Paktika suffered a 5.9 magnitude quake, claiming over 1,000 lives and leaving tens of thousands homeless.