At least five people, including a child, were killed and around 100 injured when a magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck Bangladesh on Friday, the government said, with buildings damaged in many areas, including the densely populated capital Dhaka.
Tremors were felt in eastern states in neighbouring India that border Bangladesh, but there were no immediate reports of major damage there, authorities said.
According to the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ), the earthquake struck at a depth of 10km, making it shallow and more widely felt.
The Bangladesh Meteorological Department confirmed that the quake hit at 10:38am local time, with the epicenter located 13km east of the Agargaon Seismic Center in Dhaka.
Earthquake of 5.2 magnitude at Kolkata#Earthquake #Kolkata #Westbengal pic.twitter.com/QLNZCKETOx
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Residents across the capital reported buildings shaking, fans swaying, and sudden jolts that sent people outdoors.
The IMD stated that the earthquake originated 13km south-southwest of Narsingdi. Witnesses in Dhaka told Reuters that panicked residents ran out of buildings, and a few makeshift structures collapsed due to the shaking.
BREAKING: 🔴
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DHAKA, Bangladesh (OSINT613) – A strong earthquake struck near the capital Dhaka in Bangladesh on Friday, delivering strong to very strong shaking across several areas, the USGS reported, as a large number of casualties are feared. pic.twitter.com/aQWtQBGs9e
People across Bangladesh, including the capital, took to social media to share their experience of the tremors.
Fire service officials in Dhaka confirmed they had not received any reports of injuries or significant structural damage.
Muhammad Yunus, the head of Bangladesh's interim government, said the injured included students from Dhaka university, factory workers in the city of Gazipur and residents of Narsingdi, the epicenter of the earthquake.
His statement gave no details of how the five died. Police said earlier three people had been killed when the railing of a six-storey building collapsed during the earthquake.
Several of the injured taken to hospital from Narsingdi, about 40 km (25 miles) east of Dhaka, were in a critical condition, health adviser Nurjahan Begum told reporters.
Dhaka residents rushed out of their homes as buildings shook and some makeshift structures collapsed, Reuters witnesses said.
"We felt a strong jolt and buildings were shaking like trees," said resident Suman Rahman. "Staircases were jammed as people rushed down. Everyone was terrified, children were crying."
The fire department said some people had been injured when bricks and loose cement fell from buildings that were under construction.
"I have never felt such a tremor in my life. We were at the office when furniture started shaking. We rushed down the stairs on the street and saw other people on the road already," said Sadman Sakib, who works in Dhaka.
The government was closely monitoring the situation and had directed departments to intensify rescue operations in affected areas, Yunus' office said in the statement.
Tremors felt across Kolkata, West Bengal, northeast India
Mild to strong tremors were felt in:
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Kolkata (including Salt Lake IT sector)
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Dakshin and Uttar Dinajpur
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Cooch Behar
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Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram
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Assam’s Guwahati, where residents stepped out as a precaution
The National Center for Seismology (NCS) confirmed that the quake occurred at 10:08am IST with a depth of 10km, 10km east-southeast of Dhaka.
Strong tremors felt across parts of Kolkata, including the Salt Lake IT sector.
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Employees evacuated buildings as precaution.
No major damage reported yet, but authorities urge people to stay alert and avoid using elevators.
Stay safe, Kolkata. 🌍⚠️#Earthquake #Kolkata #SaltLake pic.twitter.com/ZDQm6087wu
In Kolkata, office employees evacuated buildings, and authorities advised people to avoid elevators and stay alert. Social media was flooded with videos of people gathering outside homes and workplaces.
No major damage has been reported across India.
Bangladesh remains quake-prone region
Bangladesh sits in an active seismic zone and frequently experiences mild to moderate tremors. Friday’s quake once again highlighted the region’s vulnerability to earthquakes.
Authorities in both Bangladesh and India continue to monitor the situation, though so far no injuries or casualties have been reported.
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