At least five people have been killed in a strong earthquake in eastern Tajikistan, the Emergencies Committee under the Government of Tajikistan said.
Five residents of Langari Shoh jamoat in Tojikobod district were killed and at least two residents of Hijborak jamoat in Rasht district were injured as an earthquake measuring 5.0-6.0 on a Richter scale reportedly struck the Rasht Valley (eastern Tajikistan) in the morning of July 10.
The quake was centered in the area 165 kilometers northeast of Dushanbe and 12 kilometers east of the Rasht district, according to the Emergencies Committee.
According to the preliminary data, the quake damaged seven residential buildings in Khojborak jamoat and 12 residential building in Sharkho and Sari Shukon villages in Askalon jamoat of the Rasht district.
A 2.0-3.0 magnitude reportedly could be felt in Dushanbe.
By president’s instruction a special government commission has been set up to assess an actual damage caused to the region by the tremor.
Meanwhile, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Center (EMSC) said the earthquake with a magnitude of 5.9 struck 27 kilometers east of the Rasht district. The quake was at a depth of 40 kilometers.
It has been at least the fourth strong earthquake in the Rasht Valley over the past fourteen years.
Recall, three persons were killed and at least three others injured as a devastating earthquake hit the Rasht district on July 22, 2007. The tremor reportedly affected some 10 villages in the jamoats of Qalai Surkh and Nusrtatullo Makhsum” and more than 100 residential buildings were damaged by the earthquake. The tremor measuring 6.0 on a 12-point scale was reportedly centered some 35 kilometers north of Gharm, the administrative center of the Rasht district.
Another strong quake jolted the Rasht Valley on May 20, 2015. According to the Geophysics Service, the quake with a magnitude of up to 6.0 was centered some 120 kilometers northeast of Dushanbe. The U.S. Geological Survey says the quake measured a magnitude of 5.5. It said the tremor hit 25 kilometers ESE (east-southeast) of Roghun at a depth of 11 kilometers
An earthquake that hit the Rasht Valley on July 1, 2016, reportedly completely destroyed fifteen homes in Hijborak and Askalon jamoats and partially damaged 30 other homes. Tajikistan's Geophysical Service said the 5.0-6.0 magnitude earthquake was centered in the area 174 kilometers northeast of Dushanbe and 15 kilometers southeast of Gharm, the administrative center of the Rasht district.
The mountainous Tajikistan is prone to regular natural disasters, including landslides and earthquakes.
