PAKISTAN controlled Kashmir Prime Minister Farooq Haider Khan (center) talks with an injured earthquake victim at a hospital in Mirpur on Sunday. AFP
MIRPUR, Pakistan (AFP) — Rescue workers battled on Wednesday to reach people affected by a shallow earthquake that rocked northeast Pakistan a day earlier, killing at least 22 people and injuring hundreds more as it tore roads apart and felled buildings.
Schools were shuttered near the quake-hit city of Mirpur in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir where poor areas were reduced to rubble and the towering brick fences surrounding expensive homes had crumbled.
Residents combed through the wreckage and assessed the damage inflicted on their homes, with large cracks defacing walls in the houses that still stood.
The Pakistan military continued to lead search and rescue operations as day broke with fears growing that the death toll may jump again.
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Rain continued to inundate the area after overnight showers turned already damaged roads into muddy thoroughfares where livestock roamed freely.
Mirpur, a city known for its palatial houses, has strong ties to Britain with the majority of its 450,000 residents carrying both British and Pakistani passports.
Near Mirpur, roads were completely destroyed and vehicles overturned by the tremors while bridges, mobile phone towers, and electricity poles were also badly damaged in the melee.
The quake sent people in Lahore and Islamabad running into the streets, while tremors were also felt as far as New Delhi.
The country was also hit by a 7.6-magnitude quake on 8 October 2005, that killed more than 73,000 people and left about 3.5 million homeless, mainly in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir.
