Quake Rattles Northwest Iran, Injures over 500
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – An earthquake measuring 5.4 on the Richter scale hit Khoy city in Iran’s northwestern province of West Azarbaijan on Wednesday morning, damaging houses and injuring over 500 people.
The earthquake that rocked Khoy at 3:51 am local time was followed by at least 30 aftershocks.
The director of the crisis management center in Khoy told Tasnim that at least 530 people have been injured in the incident, most of whom have sustained injuries while escaping houses.
Rescue and relief teams have been deployed to the area.
Iran is one of the most seismically active countries in the world, being crossed by several major fault lines that cover at least 90% of the country.
The deadliest quake in Iran's modern history happened in June 1990, devastating many areas in the northern province of Gilan and killing around 37,000 people.
In 2003, a magnitude 6.6 earthquake in the province of Kerman flattened the historic city of Bam, killing more than 26,000 people.
