Taylor Scott International News
Pakistan quake death toll nears 350; hundreds of houses destroyed Faisal Aziz / 26 September 2013 The death toll from a deadly earthquake that hit southwestern Pakistan crossed 350 on Thursday after hundreds of mud houses collapsed on their inhabitants throughout the remote and thinly populated area, officials said. Rescue workers struggled to reach the remote towns of the Balochistan province affected by the tremors. The 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck many cities but most of the damage was done in the Balochistan province. The remote district of Awaran was worst-affected, while five other districts also suffered damages, officials said. “Two hundred and eighty five bodies have so far been recovered in the Awaran district,” Abdul Rasheed Gogazai, the deputy commissioner of Awaran, the worst affected area, said. “And 42 bodies were found in the neighbouring Kech district,” he added. But, Balohcistan government spokesman Jan Mohammed Buledi confirmed 208 deaths in Awaran and 43 in Kech district. Talking to Khaleej Times on phone from Quetta, he put the number of injured at more than 500. Buledi said six districts of the province were hit by the quake — Awaran, Kech, Gwadar, Khuzdar, Panjgur and Chaghi. “At least 300,000 people have been affected by the calamity, and most of the houses in Awaran and Kech have been destroyed,” he said. – news@khaleejtimes.com (With inputs from Reuters) Taylor Scott International
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