13 May, Islamabad
A 4.6 magnitude earthquake struck northern Pakistan today, causing mild tremors in cities like Islamabad, Peshawar, and Rawalpindi.
A moderate 4.6 Richter scale earthquake hit some parts of Pakistan on Tuesday, shaking several cities with tremors and rekindling fears after two previous quakes shook the nation at the weekend. The most recent seismic activity was experienced in some northern and central Pakistan areas, such as Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Peshawar, and neighboring areas.
As per the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), the earthquake struck at around 10:47 AM local time. Its epicenter was in the vicinity of the Hindu Kush area in northeastern Afghanistan, a seismically active area that regularly produces tremors in Pakistan because of its proximity and fault line activity.
The earthquake’s depth was measured at around 100 kilometers, which served to reduce the surface-level effect.
Though the tremors created brief panic in cities, where people and office workers vacated buildings, there were no initial reports of fatalities or major damage to structures. Emergency responders in principal cities, such as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab, were alerted as a precaution.
Schools briefly suspended classes, and metro operations in some cities were suspended to check potential infrastructure weaknesses.
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) released a statement soon after the earthquake, affirming that they were keeping a close watch on the situation and had received no distress calls or reports of damage from local authorities.
People have been urged to stay calm but vigilant, particularly considering the seismic activity over the past few days.
Monday’s quake comes on the heels of twin tremors that struck different parts of the nation on Saturday. The previous tremors, measuring 5.0 and 4.2, respectively, were also centered in the vicinity of the Afghanistan-Tajikistan border area.
Pakistan is situated on the active margin between the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates, and it is among the most seismically active areas on the planet. Provinces like Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Gilgit-Baltistan, which are situated close to large fault lines, are exposed to high risks of frequent seismic activity.
Though they did not cause any serious damage, the back-to-back events have raised concerns about a possible trend of heightened seismic activity in the area.
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