Tajikistan earthquake kills 5 and damages dozens of homes

RASHT, 10 July: At least five people have died after an earthquake struck eastern Tajikistan, according to authorities in the mountainous country.

The magnitude 5.9 quake hit 27km (17 miles) east of Tajikistan Rasht district on Saturday morning.

Tremors were also felt in the capital, Dushanbe, some 165km (100 miles) southwest of the epicentre.

“Dozens of houses were destroyed,” the Tajik committee for emergency situations said.

“Power lines were also partly damaged” in three villages in the district of Tajikabad, where all the victims lived.

The earthquake struck at 7:14am (02:14 GMT) and at a depth of 10km (6 miles), according to the committee and state news agency Khovar.

Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon ordered a commission of inquiry headed by the prime minister, Russian media reported.

Read more: 5.3 magnitude earthquake hits Swat other KP areas

A 5.3 magnitude earthquake jolted Swat, Malakand, Buner, and other parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) on Thursday.

The epicentre of the earthquake was located at the Afghanistan-Tajikistan border area at a depth of 168 kilometres.