Pakistan will not issue any appeals to the international community for help as the country has the required resources to carry out the rescue and relief work, said Information Minister Pervez Rashid.
“We have enough resources to handle the situation. Our top priority is to help those affected because of the earthquake,” Rashid told a news conference.
Pakistani meteorological department official Zahid Rafiq said the quake was felt across the country. As buildings in Islamabad shook, panicked residents poured into the streets, and many recited verses from the Quran.
Many Pakistanis recall the 7.6-magnitude earthquake of Oct. 8, 2005, that killed more than 80,000 people and left more than 3 million homeless, most in the northwest of the country and in the divided region of Kashmir.
That quake was much shallower than Monday’s — 10 kilometers (6 miles) below the surface, compared with 213 kilometers (130 miles) — and thus caused greater damage, said Mohammad Hanif, an official at the Meteorological Department.
In Srinagar, the main city in the India-controlled portion of Kashmir, tremors lasted at least 40 seconds, with buildings swaying and electrical wires swinging wildly, residents said.
People ran from buildings shouting, crying and chanting religious hymns to try to keep calm.
“I thought it was the end of the world,” shopkeeper Iqbal Bhat said.
Kashmir’s Chief Secretary B.R. Sharma said the quake had caused limited damage, though in some areas “many houses and government buildings have developed cracks, and some have also partially collapsed.”
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Khan reported from Peshawar, Pakistan. Associated Press writers Rahim Faiez in Kabul; Munir Ahmed and Zarar Khan in Islamabad, Pakistan; Roshan Mughal in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan; Anwarullah Khan in Khar, Pakistan; Sherin Zada in Mingora, Pakistan; Aqeel Ahmed in Mansehra, Pakistan; Asim Tanveer in Multan, Pakistan; Aijaz Hussain in Srinagar, India; and Nirmala George in New Delhi contributed to this report
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