An earthquake in Afghanistan has resulted in the deaths of eight members of the same family after their home collapsed in the Gosfand Dara area of Kabul province. A child aged around two years old was the only survivor, though injured, as confirmed by Health Ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman on Saturday. Afghanistan’s disaster management agency reported the boy sustained injuries in the incident.

The 5.8-magnitude quake struck at 8:42 PM local time (16:12 GMT) on Friday at a depth of 186 km (115 miles). The US Geological Survey (USGS) stated the epicentre was in the northeastern province of Badakhshan, with the capital Kabul located about 290 km (180 miles) southwest. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage in areas closer to the epicentre, as the remote province often delays information relay to Kabul by several hours.

Strong tremors were felt across multiple parts of Afghanistan, including Kabul, and as far as the Indian capital New Delhi, according to witnesses cited by Reuters. Pakistan also experienced the quake in cities such as Islamabad, Peshawar, Chitral, Swat, and Shangla, though no immediate injuries or damage were reported. Afghanistan is prone to frequent earthquakes along the Hindu Kush mountain range, near the junction of the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates, with an average of 560 fatalities annually.

The deadliest tremor in recent history occurred last August, when a shallow magnitude 6 earthquake in eastern Afghanistan devastated mountain villages, killing at least 2,200 people. Most casualties were in Kunar province, where residents typically inhabit wood and mud-brick houses along steep valleys. Impoverished Afghanistan often struggles to respond effectively to natural disasters, particularly in remote regions, due to poorly constructed homes made of bricks, wood, and mud in rural areas.

Source: www.aljazeera.com