Wailing villagers here dug through rubble with their bare hands in a desperate search for loved ones missing since a devastating quake struck Balochistan province in southwest Pakistan Wednesday morning, killing at least 175 people and injuring hundreds more. Thousands may have lost their homes and hundreds may have died in the earthquake, the International Committee of the Red Cross said. Many people were believed to be buried under rubble. Pakistan's Meteorological Department put the magnitude at 6.5 and said the quake, at a shallow depth of about 10 km (six miles), hit 60 km (40 miles) northeast of Balochistan's provincial capital, Quetta, at 5.10 A.M. (2310 GMT on Tuesday). About 20 aftershocks rattled the nerves of survivors during the day. At 5.32 P.M. (1132 GMT) another strong aftershock with a magnitude of 6.2 struck the area. There were no immediate reports of more damage or casualties. People rushed in from adjoining cities and towns frantic to know the fate of their loved ones. The village of Wam was one of the worst hit. The tremors destroyed almost all of its mud houses and triggered landslides of rocks and boulders while people slept. “The village has been flattened. You can't see a house still standing. There's destruction everywhere,” said Abdul Rahim Ziyawal, a rescue worker. The epicenter of the quake was in Ziarat district, a scenic valley and one of the main tourist spots in Balochistan. The chief administrator of Ziarat district, which has a population of about 50,000, said 170 bodies had been recovered. More than 200 wounded have been taken to hospitals in Quetta and elsewhere, officials and volunteers said. In all, at least eight villages in Ziarat and Pishin areas were razed to rubble. For survivors, relief began to trickle into the village despite the overland route being all but impassable after the quake left huge cracks in the main 50-kilometer road from Quetta to Ziarat and sent massive boulders crashing down from the mountains. Rescuers were still trying to reach some remote places in mountains above the Ziarat valley, where many people were believed to be buried. The army sent helicopters and a medical team and paramilitary troops joined the search for survivors. Tents, blankets and clothing were being flown in. ICRC sent two teams to the area. The World Health Organization said it is sending enough medical aid and supplies for 50,000 people for three months In Wam, villager Mohammad Aleem said his two brothers and a sister-in-law had been killed and he was looking for other relatives. “I don't know who's survived and who's died. I'm still searching,” said Aleem as he clawed through rubble with his hands. – Agencies Natural disaster zone • Pakistan is no stranger to natural disasters. In 1935, about 30,000 people were killed and Quetta was largely destroyed by a severe earthquake. In October 2005, about 73,000 people were killed when a 7.6 magnitude quake hit northern mountains. Last year, the worst floods on record in Balochistan killed hundreds.
