7.2 Intensity Tremour Hits Tajikistan

DUSHANBE: A severe earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale hit the eastern part of Tajikistan in the early hours of Thursday. No loss of life or property was reported from the region initially due to the limited number of people inhabiting the region.

According to reports, the major tremor hit at around 6:07 AM local time on Thursday. It was felt in multiple countries including Pakistan, Uzbekistan, China, Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan along with the source Tajikistan.

The epicentre of this quake was mentioned to be 47 km from Alichur in Tajikistan and about 82 kilometres from the nearest border with the Chinese Republic. Strong tremors were reported from China's western Xinjiang region, including Kashgar and Artux as well.

Due to the sparse population in the region, no reports of casualties were reported from either of the countries. But the mountainous Gorno-Badakhshan autonomous region, where the earthquake took place is also the location of lake Sarez. It is a major source of water in the region and holds a huge amount of the same. Any damage to the lake could have spelt disaster in the whole region, spanning multiple countries. The lake itself was created by major tectonic activity more than a century back.

According to reports, power supplies were disrupted in several parts of China due to this earthquake. Passenger trains under the Xinjiang railroad department also halted their services in the Aksu to Kashgar section to avoid any possible damage.

It can be noted that this region is one of the areas having a high probability of earthquakes. The 7.2 tremor triggered multiple moderate aftershocks in the region ranging between 4 and 5 on the Richter Scale. This comes within a month of the multiple major earthquakes that hit the Turkey-Syria region leaving more than 50000 people dead.

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