Two successive quakes rock Afghanistan

The first earthquake that struck northern Afghanistan at 4:51 am India Standard Time was of 4.3 magnitude. This was followed by a second more powerful tremor of 4.7 magnitude at 5:16 am IST.

New Delhi: Afghanistan was rocked by two successive earthquakes of more than four magnitude on Saturday, the National Centre for Seismology said here.

The first earthquake that struck northern Afghanistan at 4:51 am India Standard Time was of 4.3 magnitude. This was followed by a second more powerful tremor of 4.7 magnitude at 5:16 am IST. The epicentre of both the quakes was located about 280 km from Kabul. The focal depth of the two quakes was over 180 km.

---

The Afghanistan quakes come a day after Myanmar was hit with two strong shallow earthquakes leading to widespread damage.

Regions as far as Bangkok in Thailand also felt the impact with an under construction 30-storey skyscraper collapsing like a pack of cards and several tall buildings swaying, triggering panic among residents.