Strong earthquake in Iran, hundreds of casualties

A magnitude 6.5 earthquake occurred in Southeastern Iran on December 20, killing at least 7 people, hundreds of people injured and many houses destroyed.

The earthquake occurred at 22:12 (18 42 GMT), the center of the earthquake in Kerman province and affected the whole province of Sistan-Baluchestan that borders Afghanistan and Pakistan.

September 16, 1978: The magnitude 7.8 earthquake in Iran kills 25,000 people.

According to Kerman provincial authorities, there are 30 villages in the area affected by the earthquake and at least three villages destroyed.

An employee of the Red Crescent organization informed that in some rural areas, earthquakes have severely damaged many houses, especially in the village of Hosseinabad, many houses have turned into rubble.

Rescue teams were dispatched to the area where the earthquake occurred.

Mr. Esmail Najjar, chief of the province of Kerman, said there are still hundreds of people currently trapped in the rubble while access to the villages is difficult.

The official IRNA news agency reported that there had been nine aftershocks after the earthquake, including a magnitude of up to 5 on the Richter scale.

Kerman Province is one of the areas with frequent earthquakes. Earlier, in 2003, a strong earthquake in the city of Bam in this province killed about 31,000 people.