5.5magnitude quake jolts western Iran, injures 8
09:22 - 4 May 2012
Kurdpa: A relatively strong earthquake jolted a small Kurdish town in western Iran near the Iraqi border on Thursday, injuring eight people and damaging buildings, local media reported.
The magnitude 5.5 quake hit the sparsely populated area near the town of Mourmouri, in Abdanan county in Ilam province, about 300 miles (480 kilometers) southwest of the capital Tehran, at 2:39 p.m.
Two after shocks with magnitude of 3.3 and 3.7 were also recorded an hour following the first tremor.
Homes in many of the surrounding villages have been completely destroyed and mountain slides have also blocked access to many villages.
The report said the quake sent people rushing out of their homes in Mourmouri and that scores of buildings were damaged in nearby towns of Abdanan and Dehloran.
The area has experienced dozens of moderate earthquakes over the past few weeks; however, there were no warnings from the local officials of any upcoming earthquakes and lack of predictions for after-shocks have also spread panic among the population.
Iran is located on seismic fault lines and is prone to earthquakes, experiencing at least one slight quake a day on average.
In 2003, some 26,000 people were killed by a magnitude 6.6 quake that flattened the historic southeastern city of Bam.
The deadliest quake in the country was in June 1990 and measured 7.7 on the Richter scale. About 37,000 people were killed and more than 100,000 injured in the northern provinces of Gilan and Zanjan. It devastated 27 towns and about 1,870 villages.
Tehran alone sits on two major fault lines, and the capital\'s 14 million residents fear the devastations of a major quake.
with files from the agencies
The magnitude 5.5 quake hit the sparsely populated area near the town of Mourmouri, in Abdanan county in Ilam province, about 300 miles (480 kilometers) southwest of the capital Tehran, at 2:39 p.m.
Two after shocks with magnitude of 3.3 and 3.7 were also recorded an hour following the first tremor.
Homes in many of the surrounding villages have been completely destroyed and mountain slides have also blocked access to many villages.
The report said the quake sent people rushing out of their homes in Mourmouri and that scores of buildings were damaged in nearby towns of Abdanan and Dehloran.
The area has experienced dozens of moderate earthquakes over the past few weeks; however, there were no warnings from the local officials of any upcoming earthquakes and lack of predictions for after-shocks have also spread panic among the population.
Iran is located on seismic fault lines and is prone to earthquakes, experiencing at least one slight quake a day on average.
In 2003, some 26,000 people were killed by a magnitude 6.6 quake that flattened the historic southeastern city of Bam.
The deadliest quake in the country was in June 1990 and measured 7.7 on the Richter scale. About 37,000 people were killed and more than 100,000 injured in the northern provinces of Gilan and Zanjan. It devastated 27 towns and about 1,870 villages.
Tehran alone sits on two major fault lines, and the capital\'s 14 million residents fear the devastations of a major quake.
with files from the agencies
