Tehran: Three were killed and 816 people were injured in a 5.9-magnitude earthquake that hit northwestern Iran near the border with Turkey. The shallow quake also hit Khoy, a city with a population of around 200,000 in West Azerbaijan province at 9.44 pm on Saturday.
Buildings collapsed and rubbled crushed cars while panicked residents fled their homes. The freezing winter conditions and over 20 aftershocks made evacuation difficult.
A state TV broadcast showed footage of half-destroyed houses suggesting major damage to residential buildings. People were seen huddling around fires and wrapped in blankets. According to the IRNA news agency, buildings in 70 villages suffered damage and rescuers worked to clear rubble to free people trapped around 800 km northwest of Tehran.
Iran's interior minister, Ahmad Vahidi visited the spot and said water, power, and gas connections were impacted. Iran's Red Crescent Society chief, Pirhossein Koolivand, said search and rescue operations are done and no more survivors or bodies are believed to be trapped.
Iran's Gulf Arab neighbours have raised concerns about the reliability of the country's sole nuclear power facility and the risk of radioactive leaks.