At least 200 die as strong earthquake hits Afghanistan, Pakistan

PanARMENIAN.Net - A powerful earthquake struck a remote area of northeastern Afghanistan on Monday, October 26, shaking the capital Kabul and killing at least 200 people in Afghanistan andPakistan, officials said, according to Reuters.

The death toll could climb because communications were down in much of the rugged Hindu Kush mountain range area where the quake was centered.

Reports of deaths poured in from different areas of both countries.

In one of the worst single incidents, a panicked evacuation at girls' school killed at least 12 students in the Afghan province of Takhar.

"They fell under the feet of other students," said Abdul Razaq Zinda, provincial head of the Afghan National Disaster Management Agency, who reported heavy damage in Takhar.

Shockwaves were felt in northern India and in Pakistan, where hundreds of people ran out of buildings as the ground rolled beneath them.

"I was in my car, and when I stopped my car, the car itself was shaking as if someone was pushing it back and forth."

The quake was 213 km (132 miles) deep and centered 254 km (158 miles) northeast of Kabul in Afghanistan's Badakhshan province.

The U.S. Geological Survey initially measured the quake's intensity at 7.7 then revised it down to 7.5.

In Afghanistan, a total of 17 were reported dead including the 12 schoolgirls and five people killed in the eastern province of Nangarhar, officials said.