Early morning Earthquake of 5.9 magnitude shakes Afghanistan
A powerful earthquake of magnitude 5.9 struck Afghanistan early Wednesday morning, according to the National Centre for Seismology. Occurring at 04:43 AM IST, the quake's epicenter was located in the Hindu Kush region, at a depth of 75 kilometers. Afghanistan, already vulnerable due to frequent natural disasters and ongoing conflict, faces significant challenges in coping with such events.
Kabul [Afghanistan], April 16 (ANI): An earthquake of magnitude 5.9 has struck Afghanistan, as reported by the National Centre for Seismology (NCS).
The earthquake occurred in the early hours of Wednesday morning at 04:43 AM Indian Standard Time (IST).
The NCS shared the details in a post on X, saying that the earthquake occurred at Latitude 35.83 N, Longitude 70.60 E.
As per the NCS, the earthquake occurred at a depth of 75 kilometres. "EQ of M: 5.9, On: 16/04/2025 04:43:58 IST, Lat: 35.83 N, Long: 70.60 E, Depth: 75 Km, Location: Hindu Kush, Afghanistan", NCS wrote on X.
As per the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), Afghanistan remains highly vulnerable to natural disasters, including seasonal flooding, landslides and earthquakes.
These frequent earthquakes in Afghanistan cause damage to vulnerable communities, which are already grappling with decades of conflict and under-development and have left them with little resilience to cope with multiple simultaneous shocks, UNOCHA noted.
Afghanistan has a history of powerful earthquakes, and the Hindu Kush Mountain range is a geologically active area where quakes occur every year, according to the Red Cross.
Afghanistan sits on numerous fault lines between the Indian and the Eurasian tectonic plates, with a fault line also running directly through Herat. (ANI)