September 2022 Afghanistan earthquake
  | |
| UTC time | 2022-09-04 21:57:35 |
|---|---|
| ISC event | 624749335 |
| USGS-ANSS | ComCat |
| Local date | September 5, 2022 |
| Local time | 02:27 |
| Magnitude | 5.1 Mw |
| Depth | 10 km (6.2 mi) |
| Epicenter | 34°39′43″N 70°42′04″E / 34.662°N 70.701°E |
| Fault | Reverse |
| Max. intensity | MMI VII (Very strong) |
| Casualties | 18 dead, 42 injured |
On September 5, 2022, a reverse faulting earthquake with a moderate magnitude of 5.1 struck Kunar Province, Afghanistan, close to the city of Jalalabad.[1]
Tectonic setting
[edit]Much of Afghanistan is situated in a broad zone of continental deformation within the Eurasian Plate. Seismic activity in Afghanistan is influenced by the subduction of the Arabian Plate to the west and the oblique subduction of the Indian Plate in the east. The subduction rate of the Indian Plate along the continental convergent boundary is estimated to be 39 mm/yr or higher. Transpression due to the plates interacting is associated with high seismicity within the shallow crust. Seismicity is detectable to a depth of 300 km (190 mi) beneath Afghanistan due to plate subduction.[2] These earthquakes beneath the Hindu Kush are the result of movement on faults accommodating detachment of the subducted crust.[3] Within the shallow crust, the Chaman Fault represents a major transform fault associated with large shallow earthquakes that forms the transpressional boundary between the Eurasian and Indian Plates. This zone consists of seismically active thrust and strike-slip faults that have accommodated crustal deformation since the beginning of the formation of the Himalayan orogeny. These earthquakes tend to display strike-slip faulting due to its abundance and high deformation rate.[4]
Impact
[edit]At least 18 people died and 42 others were injured.[5][6] It was felt in Nangarhar, Kunar, Laghman, Kabul and other nearby provinces. The Ministry of Information and Culture said that at least nine fatalities were reported in the Mazar Dara and Shalat areas of Nurgal District in Kunar province. Three people from the district were also injured. Some of the injured were students of Nangarhar University who attempted to escape their dormitory by leaping out from windows.[6] Over a dozen homes are said to be destroyed, most of which were in the province's Nurgal District.[7][8][9] Some were previously damaged by flooding that killed over 600 people. In Laghman, 15 homes were totally or partially destroyed and two people were injured.[6]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "M 5.1 - 34 km NE of Jalālābād, Afghanistan". earthquake.usgs.gov. 4 September 2022.
- ^ Wheeler, Russell L.; Bufe, Charles G.; Johnson, Margo L.; Dart, Richard L. (2005). "Seismotectonic Map of Afghanistan, with Annotated Bibliography" (PDF). Open-File Report 2005–1264. U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-08-12. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
- ^ Kufner, Sofia-Katerina; Kakar, Najibullah; Bezada, Maximiliano; Bloch, Wasja; Metzger, Sabrina; Yuan, Xiaohui; Mechie, James; Ratschbacher, Lothar; Murodkulov, Shokhruhk; Deng, Zhiguo; Schurr, Bernd (16 March 2021). "The Hindu Kush slab break-off as revealed by deep structure and crustal deformation". Nature Communications. 12 (1685): 1685. Bibcode:2021NatCo..12.1685K. doi:10.1038/s41467-021-21760-w. PMC 7966371. PMID 33727553.
- ^ Shnizai, Zakeria (26 June 2020). "Mapping of active and presumed active faults in Afghanistan by interpretation of 1-arcsecond SRTM anaglyph images". Journal of Seismology. 24 (6): 1131–1157. Bibcode:2020JSeis..24.1131S. doi:10.1007/s10950-020-09933-4. S2CID 220063065. Archived from the original on 23 June 2022. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
- ^ "وقوع دو زلزله در شمالشرق افغانستان جان شش نفر را گرفت" [Two earthquakes in northeastern Afghanistan killed six people]. Radio Azadi (in Persian). 6 September 2022. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
- ^ a b c "زمینلرزه در شرق؛ ۸ تن کشته و ۴۲ تن زخمی شدند" [Earthquake in the east; 8 people were killed and 42 people were injured]. Hasht-e Subh Daily (in Persian). 7 September 2022. Archived from the original on 6 September 2022. Retrieved 7 September 2022.
- ^ "Six dead, 9 injured as 5.3-magnitude earthquake hits Afghanistan, Pakistan". Hans. 5 September 2022.
- ^ "10 dead in Kunar as quake rocks eastern zone". Pajhwok Afghan News. 5 September 2022.
- ^ "Devastating Earthquake Jolts Eastern Afghanistan Killing and Injuring at Least 10". Khaama Press. 5 September 2022.