KABUL: At least 25 people were killed in flash floods that hit northern Afghanistan, officials said yesterday, while an earthquake shook the northeastern part of the country and neighboring Pakistan.
The police chief of Balkh province, Shir Jan Durani, said the flooding occurred in the remote districts of Kishindih, Sholgara and Nahri Shai. Five people were reported missing in the area where many homes were damaged and livestock drowned, he said.
There were no immediate reports of injuries from the earthquake that hit shook the Hindu Kush mountains and was felt in neighboring Pakistan. The US Geological Survey said the epicenter of the magnitude-5.7 earthquake was 11 km (7 miles) south of Mehterlam, the capital of Laghman province.
The quake had a depth of 66 km (41 miles), the geological survey said. It was felt in Kabul, many parts of eastern Afghanistan and as far away as Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan. There were some reports of minor damage in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province.
Earthquakes are common in northeastern Afghanistan, and many occur in the Hindu Kush and broader region as a result of the collision of the India and Eurasia continental plates.
In the flooding, Rahmatullah Zahid, a local official in Balkh province, said seven people died in Sholgara and at least six in Kishindih.
Many homes in rural Afghanistan are built of mud or stone and are easily washed away by flooding. The United Nations, which helps coordinate disaster relief, was not immediate available for comment.
