More than 1 000 feared dead

2005-10-10 13:09

Islamabad - A massive earthquake is feared to have killed more than 1 000 people in Pakistan on Saturday, chief military spokesperson Major General Shaukat Sultans said.

"The death toll could be more than 1 000. There could be massive casualties but we do not have exact numbers," Sultan said from the capital Islamabad.

In Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-controlled Kashmir, 50% of buildings had either collapsed or been damaged, Sultan said.

A military hospital in Rawalakot in Kashmir had also been damaged and there were some casualties among army personnel, he added.

At least two people were killed and 32 were injured when an apartment block in the capital Islamabad collapsed, police said, and photographers at the scene said they had seen more bodies being pulled out.

One Egyptian national working for a mobile phone company died and another Egyptian was injured when the block collapsed, Egyptian Ambassador Hussein Haredy said.

The dead man, a married father-of-two, "was still breathing when he was pulled out of the building but he died upon reaching the hospital," Haredy said.

"We are very sorry, not only for the death of the Egyptian national but also for the people of Pakistan. We have presented our condolences to the government of Pakistan," he added.

Officials said 25 people were feared killed when a courtroom collapsed in Muzaffarabad during the quake.

Police in northern Mansehra district said two high schools collapsed and rescuers had recovered 10 bodies out of the debris. "Some 40 injured were also recovered," a police official said.

- AFP