Earthquake of 7.3 magnitude hits Iran-Iraq border killing several people

A powerful magnitude 7.3 earthquake hit Iran and Iraq on Sunday killing 210 people, state media in the two countries said, as rescuers searched for dozens trapped under rubble.

A quake registering a magnitude between 7 and 7.9 can inflict widespread and heavy damage. Moreover, many houses in rural areas of Iran are made of mud bricks that can crumble easily in a quake.

Officials expected the casualty toll to rise when search and rescue teams reached remote areas of Iran.

The earthquake was felt in several provinces of Iran but the hardest hit province was Kermanshah, which announced three days of mourning.

The main hospital of the capital of the county was severely damaged and could not treat hundreds of injured people who were taken there, the head of the Iranian emergency services, Pirhossein Koulivand said.

Electricity was cut off in several Iranian and Iraqi cities, and fears of aftershocks sent thousands of people in both countries out onto the streets and parks in cold weather.

Iranian Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli said that the Iranian armed forces have been deployed to help the emergency services.

Residents of Turkey’s south eastern city of Diyarbakir also reported feeling a strong tremor, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties in the city.

Israeli media said the quake was felt in many parts of Israel as well.