KABUL/ISLAMABAD/PESHAWAR: In Pakistan, at least 248 people are confirmed dead in the aftermath of a massive 7.5 magnitude earthquake which hit northern Afghanistan and Pakistan on Monday.
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) says at least 1,665 are injured across Pakistan.
Rescuers on Tuesday rushed to deliver relief aid to victims of the quake, which killed at least 311 people in the Pak-Afghan region over a wide swathe of mountainous terrain.
Region wise break-up of casualties in Pakistan as compiled by NDMA. —Courtesy: NDMA website“Many houses and buildings have collapsed in the city,” said Arbab Muhammad Asim, district mayor for the northwestern city of Peshawar.
Many people were trapped under piles of rubble, with officials warning that the toll was set to rise.
“The building was swinging like a pendulum, it felt as if the heavens would fall,” Peshawar shop owner Tufail Ahmed told AFP.
Related: PM Nawaz convenes emergency quake meeting
Thousands spent the night outdoors in near-freezing temperatures reluctant to go back inside for fear of aftershocks, Pakistani media reported.
Rescue and relief operations underway
Pakistani soldiers load food bags for earthquake survivors into an army helicopter in Peshawar on October 27, 2015. —AFP
Pakistan Army continued relief efforts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) on Tuesday.
Injured are shifted to an army aircraft for further treatment at CMH. -Photo courtesy Pakistan Army
Army spokesman Lt Gen Asim Bajwa said on Twitter two army helicopters each were flying in KP and GB for rescue services.
