Massive Earthquake Hits Southwest Pakistan
September 25, 2013
A 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck southwest Pakistan’s Balochistan province yesterday. At least 325 people are known to be dead from collapsed buildings, and there are reports of hundreds of people wounded and many others trapped under rubble. The quake’s focus occurred at a depth of 13 miles (20 kilometers). The earthquake caused an island to appear in the Arabian Sea a little more than 1/2 mile (1 kilometer) off the coast near the port of Gwadar. The quake was so powerful that the it was felt across Pakistan; in Hyderabad, India; and in India’s capital, New Delhi. In Pakistan’s commercial center, Karachi, some 390 miles (680 kilometers) from the quake’s epicenter, office workers were forced to evacuate shaking buildings.
An earthquake occurs when Earth's rock suddenly breaks and shifts, releasing energy in vibrations called seismic waves. The point on Earth where the rock first breaks is called the focus. The point on the surface above is known as the epicenter (World Book illustration).
Additional World Book articles:
- When the Earth Moves (a special report)
- Pakistan 2005 (a Back in Time article)
