Posted on 05/28/2004 4:58:07 PM PDT by Libloather
23 Killed in Northern Iran Earthquake
46 minutes ago
By ALI AKBAR DAREINI, Associated Press Writer
TEHRAN, Iran - A strong earthquake shook central and northern Iran on Friday, killing at least 23 people — some buried by landslides on a mountain road — and seriously damaging more than 80 villages, the Interior Ministry and state-run media said.
More than 100 others were reported injured by the 6.2 magnitude earthquake, which struck at 5:08 p.m. and was centered about 45 miles north of Tehran, the U.S. Geological Survey said.
Eight provinces in central and northern Iran were affected by the temblor, with the worst-damaged villages near Alamout, about 80 miles west of Tehran, Interior Ministry spokesman Jahanbakhah Khanjani told The Associated Press.
The quake unleashed landslides and falling boulders that killed 16 people and injured 70 others by burying them in their cars along the mountainous Tehran-Chalous road, state-run television reported.
Five people were killed in Mazandaran province and two in Qazvin province, Tehran radio said. The quake also damaged homes, buildings and telephone lines in the region.
In Tehran, the quake broke windows in parts of the city, causing panicked residents to rush outdoors. As midnight approached, many families were still in the streets or parks, planning to spend the night outdoors for fear of aftershocks.
Iran is located on seismic fault lines and is prone to earthquakes. A December earthquake in Bam, in southeastern Iran, measured 6.6 magnitude and killed 26,000 people.
The depth of Friday's quake was estimated at between 10 and 16 miles, which makes it fairly shallow but still deeper than the Bam quake, said USGS (news - web sites) geophysicist Waverly Person in Golden, Colo.
"At that range, it's not quite as shallow as the Bam earthquake," Person said in an interview with the AP. "We don't expect the damage we had in Bam."
Officials at Tehran University's seismological center said Friday's quake had a magnitude of 5.5 and its epicenter was in the village of Baladeh, 43 miles northeast of Tehran, near the Caspian Sea. The center also said there were 12 aftershocks, one with a 4.4 magnitude.
The USGS said it bases its magnitude calculation by looking at measurements of a number of seismographs around the world. This figure can sometimes differ from a measurement recorded closer to the epicenter.
The army stood ready to begin rescue operations if needed, according to Tehran radio.
Associated Press writer Brian Friedman contributed to this story from New York.
lord, I hope it didn't happen during a "wedding party", or the leftists might have to turn on mother nature as an imperialist dog.
/sarcasm
Fantasia Barrino is the newest 'American Idol'.
Sticking to the really important issues would be greatly appreciated...
ROFL
"Big Media should be ALL over this one"
That's a joke, right?
Good thing she won, all the kids having been clamoring for a really excellent rendition of 'Summertime' for years.
Those 14 year olds can't get enough of Porgy and Bess you know.
Has anyone noticed how the last crop of singers on American Idol took up the habit of jumping up and down during their singing performances? Singer George hopped the most and the rest seemed to follow suit.
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