Iran earthquakes kill 87 people in the northwest

Reuters
August 11, 2012

Two strong earthquakes struck northwest Iran on Saturday, killing 87 people, injuring hundreds and scaring thousands into fleeing their homes as aftershocks continued to hit the area, Iranian state media said.

Iran is straddled by several major fault lines and has suffered several devastating earthquakes in recent years, including a 6.6. magnitude quake in 2003 which turned the southeastern historic city of Bam into dust and killed more than 25,000 people.

The U.S. Geological Survey measured Saturday’s first quake at 6.4 magnitude and said it struck 60 km (37 miles) northeast of the city of Tabriz at a depth of 9.9 km (6.2 miles). A second quake measuring 6.3 struck 49 km (30 miles) northeast of Tabriz 11 minutes later at a similar depth.

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This article was posted: Saturday, August 11, 2012 at 6:04 am

Tags: foreign affairs, weather

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