Afghanistan Earthquake Kills 900+ as Search for Survivors Begins

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A powerful earthquake hit a mountainous region of eastern Afghanistan early Wednesday, devastating local communities and sparking a desperate search for survivors as early death toll figures started rising.

Information remained scarce on the magnitude 6.1 tremor near the Pakistan border, but AP reports quakes of that strength would be expected to cause severe damage in the remote area, where homes and other buildings are poorly constructed and landslides are common.

Rescuers rushed to the area by helicopter.

Neighboring Pakistan’s Meteorological Department told AP the quake’s epicenter was in Afghanistan’s Paktika province, some 31 miles southwest of the city of Khost.

Buildings were also damaged in Khost province.

The U.S. Geological Survey, which recorded the magnitude at slightly lower at 5.9, put the depth at just six miles — another factor that could increase the damage.