Magnitude 7.8 earthquake strikes southeastern Iran

BBC : The earthquake struck Tuesday afternoon local time in a mostly desert region near Iran’s southeastern border with Pakistan. The 7.8-magnitude quake was the most powerful earthquake in Iran in more than 50 years. It was significantly stronger than the quake that occurred on 10 April near a nuclear power plant in Bushehr, Iran. However, because the epicenter of Tuesday’s quake was located at a depth of 95 km, the strength at the surface had a magnitude of only 4.0. The smaller surface magnitude, combined with the relatively low population and lack of large buildings in surrounding towns, kept the death toll significantly lower than that of the 6.6-magnitude earthquake that struck a nearby region in 2003. That quake killed more than 26 000 people. Iran and Pakistan are reporting between 30 and 40 deaths each, so far. Power services and communications with the region have been damaged, and repair and search and rescue crews have been dispatched.