Friday earthquake: Dozens of houses develop cracks in north Kashmir’s Kupwara

Srinagar: Dozens of houses have developed cracks in different parts of the Kupwara district after a massive earthquake rocked Kashmir on late Friday evening.

Tangdhar on the Line of Control (LoC) is the worst hit with several houses developing cracks.  The district administration has asked the revenue department to submit a detailed report about the losses suffered by the people.

“Houses have developed minor cracks in at least three areas of Kupwara district. However, no house has caved in. There is no major loss. We have asked tehsildars to conduct a survey and give a detailed report about the losses,” Imam Din, district development commissioner, told The Kashmir Monitor.

Preliminary figures reveal that 19 houses have developed cracks in the Karna area of the Kupwara district. Three houses suffered minor damages in Trehgam area. Revenue officials have panned across the border areas to ascertain the losses.

An earthquake measuring 6.1 on Richter Scale rocked Kashmir around 10:35 pm on Friday night. Disaster management officials said its epicenter was in Amritsar Punjab at a depth of 10 kilometers.

Cries and screams rent the air as panic gripped the people, who were retiring for the day. The temblor jolted the houses sending people into a tizzy.  

The scene brought back the memories of October 2005 quake when thousands of people died and tens of thousands of houses and other structures were damaged in the border areas of Uri and Tangdhar in north Kashmir.

Ten years later on October 27, 2015, a powerful earthquake measuring 7.5 on the Richter scale wreaked havoc leaving two elderly women dead. Two army men suffered serious injuries when their bunker collapsed in the quake.

“There was some panic but not much. By the grace of God, everything was ok. There was no loss of life or property,” said Din.

Deputy Commissioner said they would provide compensation to the affected families under SDRF funds. “Once we get the list, we will provide the relief. SDRF has already fixed the rates for different types of damages,” he said.