Over 100 injured in Iran earthquake

At least 105 people were injured in the 5.2-magnitude earthquake that shook Iran's western Kohgiluye and Boyerahmad province on Wednesday, media reports said.

The epicentre of the earthquake, with a depth of 8 km, was determined to be at 30.834 degrees north latitude and 51.559 degrees east longitude, Xinhua reported.

People in Sisakht city rushed out onto the streets in panic following the quake. Firefighters were patrolling on the streets and asking people to stay out of their houses.

Major damage has not been reported in the city so far, but the residential areas in the suburban rural regions have sustained damage.

The cell phone communication and power supplies in some areas of Dena region and Sisakht have been disrupted.

The Governor of Boyerahmad county, Shahrokh Kenari, said that the drinking water of Madvan city and vicinity has been cut off due to the damage of a major water pipe.

Rockfalls in some mountainous areas have blocked the roads to Yasooj, the capital city of Kohgiluye and Boyerahmad province.

The Managing Director of Red Crescent Society of the province, Amanollah Jahanbin, warned the locals and the mountaineers of the rockfalls and asked them to avoid climbing the heights of Dena Ranges.

Relief teams and five evaluations teams have been dispatched to the region, Jahanbin told ISNA.

Iran sits on the earth plates' chasms and daily occurrence of tremors is anticipated. Multiple strong quakes have shaken western Iran in the past months.

In November 2017, a 7.3-magnitude earthquake shook the same area, killing at least 530 people and injuring more than 8,000.

--IANS

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