Rescue teams scoured Afghanistan’s mountainous east for survivors on Tuesday, as the death toll from a strong earthquake rose to 1,124, according to an updated death toll from the Afghan Red Crescent Society.
At least 3,251 people have been injured and more than 8,000 houses have been destroyed in the disaster, the group said on Tuesday. Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities had earlier said the death toll was about 900.
The 6.0 magnitude quake struck late on Sunday night in several provinces, flattening villages and leaving people trapped under rubble for hours. It damaged or destroyed thousands of homes that were made mostly of mud bricks and wood.
“The injured are being evacuated, so these figures may change significantly,” said Yousaf Hammad, a spokesman for Afghanistan’s National Disaster Management Authority. “The earthquake caused landslides in some areas, blocking roads, but they have been reopened, and the remaining roads will be reopened to allow access to areas that were difficult to reach.”
Rescue operations were carried out in four badly hit villages in Kunar on Monday, and efforts will now be focused on reaching more remote mountain areas, said Ehsanullah Ehsan, the provincial head of disaster management.
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