Iran Strong 7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Jolts Western country & Damages Villages, part one

November 13, 2017 (Persian calendar 1396/8/22)

Kermanshah province (استان كرمانشاه)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kermanshah_Province

A massive earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale has rattled west of Iran along the country's border with Iraq, initial reports said a number of villages were damaged. Media reports said several people have also lost their lives in Iran's western areas.

According to the Seismological Center of the Institute of Geophysics of Tehran University, the epicenter of the quake was about 11 km deep.

It struck the area of Azgaleh ازگله in Kermanshah province استان كرمانشاه at around 21:48 local time on Sunday.

The closest cities in the area are Tazeabad, 25km and Bayangan, 37 km away from the epicenter and the provincial capital city of Kermanshah is 122 km away.

Initial reports said a number of villages have been damaged and a number of people have lost their lives in western town of Qasr-e Shirin شهر قصرشيرين.

Iranian state television said the quake which have also strong aftershocks, damaged 8 villages and cut electricity in a number of towns and villages near the quake-hit areas.

The earthquake has also been felt by Turkey, Armenia, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, and Iran’s western, southwestern and northwestern and also central provinces, including the capital, Tehran.

Other media reports quoted Faramarz Akbari فرامرز اكبري, the governor of Qasr-e Shirin as saying that six people had died and scores more injured.

Esmail Najar اسماعيل نجاري, the head of Iran's National Disaster Management Organization said more injured people might be buried under the rubble in Qasr-e Shirin.

The quake-hit area is also around 200 km northeast of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad بغداد.

Iran is one of the most seismically active countries in the world, being crossed by several major fault lines that cover at least 90% of the country. As a result, earthquakes in Iran occur often and are destructive.

The deadliest quake in Iran's modern history happened in June 1990. It destroyed the northern cities of Rudbar, Manjil, and Lushan, along with hundreds of villages, killing an estimated 37,000 people.

Bam بم in the country’s southeastern province of Kerman استان كرمان witnessed a strong quake in December 2003 which killed 31,000 people.

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With successive aftershocks still rumbling through western Iran more than 12 hours after a massive earthquake on Sunday night, the province of Kermanshah, hit hardest by the temblor, declared three days of mourning.

Western regions of Iran, particularly residential areas in the province of Kermanshah استان كرمانشاه, have felt scores of tremors, some even measuring greater than 4.5 on the Richter scale, after the Sunday night’s massive earthquake that has killed above 320 people so far.

As on Monday morning, at least 328 people have been killed and 3,950 injured in the quake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale, whose epicenter was near Halabjah, southeast of Iraq’s Sulaymaniyah سليمانيه.

The province of Kermanshah declared three days of mourning, as rescue teams from across the country have hurried to dig out survivors stuck under the rubble and save the wounded.

In a telephone conversation with President Hassan Rouhani حسن روحاني after the natural disaster, Governor of Kermanshah Hooshang Bazvand هوشنگ بازوند expected that the death toll would rise.

Meanwhile, the provincial police chief, General Manouchehr Amanollahi منوچهر امان اللهي assured people that full security prevails across the quake-hit areas, saying all roads are open and the traffic flow is normal.

One of the cities hit hardly by the massive quake is Sarpol-e Zahab سرپل ذهاب. Witnesses say they were appalled to see the city skyline on Monday morning, saying half of the buildings seem to have been destroyed.

After a terrible night and ongoing blackout, Sarpol-e Zahab is receiving more rescue team and sniffer dogs searching for survivors buried under the rubble.

Officials say the access to rural areas is still limited.

Field hospitals have been set up in the quake-hit areas.

In a message on Monday morning, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei علي خامنه اي ordered all Iranian officials to rush to help the large number of people affected by the earthquake, and particularly rescue those trapped under rubble in the very first hours after the disaster.

Part one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Po6-yDwSdLg

Part two:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Yq3GjJywvA