An earthquake is a shaking of the ground caused by the sudden shifting of large sections of the earth's crust. Earthquakes are one of the most powerful events on earth, and they can be terrifying. A severe earthquake may release energy 10,000 times as great as that of the first atomic bomb. Rock movements during an earthquake can make rivers change their direction. Earthquakes can trigger landslides and Volcanoes that cause great damage and loss of life. Large earthquakes beneath the ocean can create a series of huge, destructive waves called Tsunamis.
ON 0 5 November 2008 a powerful earthquake has hit different parts of Baluchistan this morning. The current confirmed death toll is 165 and thousands of people have been injured who have been shifted to local hospitals. The death toll from a 6.4-magnitude earthquake that struck the south-western province of Baluchistan, Pakistan, on 29 October stands at more 200. The quake has affected about 108,000 people; 50 per cent of them are children, and some 19,000 are under five years of age. Many houses collapsed during the quake and some were destroyed in landslides. More than 15,000 mud-walled and timber homes have been severely damaged or destroyed because of their low resistance to earthquakes in extremely harsh cold weather.
The quake left between 10,000 and 15,000 people homeless when it struck the remote area early last Wednesday morning † and there seems to be no respite from more tragedy. The worst-hit area appeared to be Ziarat, about 50km north of Quetta, where hundreds of mostly mud and timber houses had been destroyed in five villages,
Army and FC troops have been sent to quake hit areas and government is claiming that rescue efforts have already begun. But rescue efforts are very slow at the moment and since this area is very cold these days, people are becoming more and more worried as the night approaches. The main issue at the moment is the burial of dead and providing food, medicines and shelter for...