Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: A 5.8 magnitude earthquake jolted parts of the country on Thursday, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD).
The PMD’s National Seismic Monitoring Centre said the earthquake struck at 7:25pm in the Hindu Kush Region, Afghanistan at a depth of 173km. It had a longitude of 70.60 East and a latitude of 36.53 North.
However, the US Geological Survey said that the magnitude of the earthquake was 5.9 and it had struck 43km SSW of Jurm, Afghanistan. Tremors were felts in Islamabad and Peshawar as well as in several other cities of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
According to reports, strong shaking was also felt in parts of Afghanistan, including the capital, Kabul, and as far away as New Delhi. Wednesday, an earthquake measuring 4.3 on the Richter scale hit Lahore and other cities of Punjab around 3:04pm (PST).
The National Seismic Monitoring Centre (NSMC) confirmed that tremors were felt in Lahore, Sheikhupura, Muridke, Farooqabad, Gujranwala, Sharaqpur, Jaranwala and other areas of Punjab. The epicentre of the earthquake was 20km away from Sheikhupura, it said.
According to some of the Lahore residents, they heard a humming sound before the earthquake. However, no casualty was reported.
