Earthquake triggers panic in Kashmir

Calcutta News.Net
Friday 5th September, 2008 (IANS)

Panic gripped this summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir Friday morning as an earthquake of moderate intensity shook buildings and sent people rushing out of their homes and offices.

'An earthquake of moderate intensity struck the Kashmir valley at 10.28 a.m. Its magnitude was 5.5 on the Richter scale. The epicentre of the quake was at latitude 36.1 degrees north and longitude 70.5 degrees east, which is in the Pakistan-Afghanistan region,' T.K. Jotshi, assistant director of the weather office, told IANS.

The shock waves lasted for several seconds, triggering confusion and panic.

"I felt as if somebody was pulling at my office chair. When I saw colleagues running out of the hall, I realised it was an earthquake," said Feroze Ahmad who works in the civil secretariat here.

So far, no damage to life or property has been reported from anywhere in the valley.

A devastating earthquake which measured 7.9 on the Richter scale had struck both the Indian and Pakistan administered parts of Kashmir in 2005, killing more than 80,000 people and rendering an even larger number homeless.

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