3 Dead, Hundreds Injured As Quake Rattles Northwest Iran
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale hit Khoy city in Iran’s northwestern province of West Azarbaijan on Saturday night, killing three people, injuring over 800 and damaging houses.
The earthquake that rocked Khoy around 9:44 pm local time was followed by over 40 aftershocks.
The governor of West Azarbaijan province said the earthquake has damaged buildings in at least 70 nearby villages.
Mohammad Sadeq Motamedian said three people have died in the disaster, while 816 others have sustained injuries. He noted that 60 people have been admitted to the hospital in Khoy, while 64 others have been taken to hospitals in Salmas, a city around 50 kilometers away from the quake-hit city.
Rescue and relief teams have been deployed to the area and cargo planes carrying relief supplies have been dispatched to the area from capital Tehran.
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.