BHEZAD KHEIL, Afghanistan — Two earthquakes shook eastern Afghanistan early Friday, collapsing mud-brick homes on top of villagers while they slept. At least 21 people were killed, officials said.
The quakes hit four villages in the high mountains of the eastern province of Nangarhar, about 30 miles from its border with Pakistan.
Afghanistan’s Hindu Kush mountain range is hit by dozens of minor earthquakes each year. Many Afghan homes are made of dried mud, so even moderate earthquakes can cause many deaths and major damage. The poverty-stricken nation is also battling a strengthened Taliban insurgency.
The quakes destroyed or damaged an estimated 100 houses in the four villages in Sherzad district, about 50 miles east of Kabul, said governor’s spokesman Ahmad Zia Abdulzai.
U.S. State Department spokesman Robert Wood said a U.S. convoy of humanitarian supplies and medical responders was headed to the quake zone.
U.S. forces stationed in the region also were standing by to assist if the Afghan government requested help, Capt. Elizabeth Mathias said.
The quakes hit four villages in the high mountains of the eastern province of Nangarhar, about 30 miles from its border with Pakistan.
Afghanistan’s Hindu Kush mountain range is hit by dozens of minor earthquakes each year. Many Afghan homes are made of dried mud, so even moderate earthquakes can cause many deaths and major damage. The poverty-stricken nation is also battling a strengthened Taliban insurgency.
The quakes destroyed or damaged an estimated 100 houses in the four villages in Sherzad district, about 50 miles east of Kabul, said governor’s spokesman Ahmad Zia Abdulzai.
U.S. State Department spokesman Robert Wood said a U.S. convoy of humanitarian supplies and medical responders was headed to the quake zone.
U.S. forces stationed in the region also were standing by to assist if the Afghan government requested help, Capt. Elizabeth Mathias said.
by the associated press
