Pakistan: Consecutive earthquakes strike rain-hit Balochistan province

Two consecutive "moderate" earthquakes struck off the coast near Pasni in rain hit Balochistan province of Pakistan on Sunday.

According to the National Seismic Monitoring Centre, the first earthquake of 5.6 magnitude struck at 6:42 p.m. It had a depth of 60 km, a longitude of 63.62 East and a latitude of 25.21 North, Dawn reported.

The second earthquake with a 5 magnitude struck 10 minutes later at 6:52 p.m. and had a depth of 30 km. It had a longitude of 63.54 East and a latitude of 25.12 North.

It was unclear if any casualties or infrastructure damage had occurred.

The quakes come at a time when Balochistan is reeling from floods caused by torrential monsoon rains.

Intermittent rains continued to lash most parts of Balochistan on Sunday, as authorities scrambled to rescue the thousands who have been left displaced due to flooding in over a dozen districts, Dawn reported.

Rainfall was reported in Kalat, Chaman, Ziarat, Muslim Bagh, Sibi, Mastung, Dalbadin, Khuzdar, Lasbela and Barkhan in the last 24 hours.

According to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority, at least 127 people have died in rains and floods in the province since June 1.

Some of those deaths were reported in parts of the province in the last 24 hours.

--IANS

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