5.4-Magnitude Quake Jolts Western Iran
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - A 5.4-magnitude earthquake jolted an area near the town of Soumar in Iran’s Western province of Kermanshah in early hours of Saturday.
According to a report by the Iranian Seismological Center, the earthquake hit the area at 00:36 local time (2006 GMT Friday).
The epicenter, with a depth of 15 km, was initially determined to be at 33.75 degrees north latitude and 45.78 degrees east longitude.
Iran is one of the most seismically active countries in the world, being crossed by several major fault lines that cover at least 90% of the country. As a result, earthquakes in Iran occur often and are destructive.
The deadliest quake in Iran's modern history happened in June 1990. It destroyed the northern cities of Rudbar, Manjil and Lushan, along with hundreds of villages, killing an estimated 37,000 people.
Bam in the country’s southeastern province of Kerman witnessed a strong quake in December 2003 which killed 31,000 people.
