According to local authorities, the death toll has now risen above 300, with the number of reported dead in Northwestern Pakistan amounting to 229 alone. This figure is expected to increase as the situation settles down and it can be further assessed. 12 young Afghan girls were also killed in a stampede as they attempted to flee their school during the tremor.
A report by the U.S. Geological Survey has stated that the earthquake was centered deep underground the Hindu Kush mountain range in Afghanistan. The epicentre of the quake was a lightly populated rural region nearby to the Afghan city of Jarm. The isolated position of many of the rural communities affected is expected to also delay any relief efforts.
Both the governments of Pakistan and Afghanistan have implored international aid agencies to assist in the recovery. They have also deployed their respective militaries to the affected regions.
Afghanistan and South Asia in general are very prone to tremors and so the nations involved are relatively well prepared to deal with the aftermath of large earthquakes, however, a tremor on this scale will of course have enormous consequences.
Hugh McFarlane