MOSCOW, April 16 (RIA Novosti) - At least 40 people have been killed after a huge earthquake struck southeastern Iran on Tuesday, Press TV reported.
The earthquake, estimated at force 7.5 on the Richter scale, hit the provinces of Sistan and Baluchistan near the border with Pakistan at 3:44 p.m. local time.
The Iranian Seismological Center (IRSC) said the epicenter of the quake, which occurred at a depth of 18 kilometers (11 miles), was 95 kilometers (57 miles) north of the city of Saravan, the IRNA news agency said.
Shockwaves were felt in neighboring countries and as far away as India's capital New Delhi. It was also felt in the Persian Gulf's littoral states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
According to Press TV, at least nine people have been killed and 100 others injured in Pakistan's Baluchistan province, which borders Iran.
Officials and local sources told Press TV that several houses were destroyed by the earthquake in Panjgur District near the Iranian border on Tuesday, killing five people including two women.
Relief teams have been dispatched to the area, Mahmoud Mozafar, head of Relief and Rescue Operations at Iran’s Red Crescent Society, told IRNA on Tuesday.
Earthquakes are a common occurrence in Iran, due to the convergence of four major tectonic plates in the region, according to the US Geological Survey.
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