October 26, 2015 Afghanistan

Afghanistan hit by an earthquake measuring 7.5 on the Richter scale

On the morning of October 26th 2015, in the morning, northern Afghanistan was hit by a devastating earthquake measuring 7.5 on the Richter scale. The epicenter was located near the town of Feyzabad, the capital of Badakhshan province in the Hindu Kush region (269 kilometers northeast of Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan).

The tremors also hit neighbouring Pakistan and were also felt in India, approximately 300 kilometers away from the epicenter. The disaster caused considerable material damage and claimed 24 victims so far in Afghanistan, 36 in Pakistan and hundreds of injured, too. The number of victims is still increasing.

In Pakistan, the towns of Gilgit, Chitral, Swat Charsada, Peshawar, Islamabad, Lahore and Multa were affected the most by the earthquake, as well as autonomous units of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

The situation in the countries stricken by the earthquake is monitored by Caritas Pakistan.