At least 160 die in Pakistan quake
At least 100 people die in south-west Pakistan as country suffers deadliest earthquake in three years
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Wednesday, 29, Oct 2008 08:07
At least 160 people have died in south-west Pakistan after the country suffered its deadliest earthquake in three years.
Officials in Baluchistan, where the quake struck late last night, say 160 bodies have so far been recovered but warned the death-toll was likely to rise.
"We have reports from local party officials that more than 100 people have died," revenue minister Zamarak Khan told the AFP news agency, adding that the same number had been injured.
The 6.4-magnitude earthquake, the epicentre of which was 70km north-east of provincial capital Quetta, flattened eight outlying villages around Ziarat, the town's mayor said.
According to the US geological survey, deadly landslides triggered by the quake have also taken place.
Three years ago 74,000 people died when a 7.6-magnitude quake struck north-west Pakistan and Kashmir.
Quetta itself was largely levelled by a 1935 earthquake that killed 30,000 when Pakistan was part of British India.