4.7-Magnitude Quake Hits Eastern Iran


4.7-Magnitude Quake Hits Eastern Iran

TEHRAN (Tasnim) – An earthquake measuring 4.7 on the Richter scale hit an area near the eastern city of Birjand in Iran’s South Khorasan Province on Wednesday.

The epicenter of the earthquake that occurred at 2:50 am local time was determined at 25 kilometers from Birjand and 17 kilometers from Khusf in South Khorasan Province.

The quake, with a depth of 9 km, was located at 32.7 degrees of latitude and 59.04 degrees of longitude.

There were no immediate reports of casualties and the extent of the damages inflicted on the quake-hit area.

However, rescue teams have been dispatched to villages near the epicenter of the mild earthquake.

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.

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