A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck northern Afghanistan overnight Sunday into Monday, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said, two months after a tremor in the impoverished nation’s east killed over 2,200 people.
The USGS issued an orange alert in its PAGER system, which is an automated system that produces information on the impact of earthquakes, and indicated that “significant casualties are likely and the disaster is potentially widespread”.
The earthquake hit at a depth of 28km (17.4 miles) near Mazar-e Sharif, which has a population of about 523,000, according to USGS.
It was felt in the capital Kabul.
An Afghan provincial health official said seven have died and 150 were injured in the quake.
The country’s national disaster management agency said further reports on casualties and damage would be shared later.
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