Earthquake hits north eastern Iran

An earthquake measuring 4.5 on the Richter scale jolted the city of Lujali in Iran’s north eastern province of North Khorasan on May 20.

The tremor occurred at 00:56 local time (GMT +4:30 hours), according to a report from the seismography center affiliated with Tehran University Geophysics Institute.

The earthquake’s epicenter was at 37.49 degrees latitude and 57.74 degrees longitude at a depth of 9 kilometers underground, the country’s official IRNA news agency reported.

There is no immediate report on possible casualties or damage.

Iran sits astride several major faults in the earth's crust and is prone to frequent earthquakes, many of which have been devastating.

The deadliest quake in the country was in June 1990 and measured 7.7 on the Richter scale.

About 37,000 people were killed and more than 100,000 injured in the north-western provinces of Gilan and Zanjan. Nearly 27 towns and 1,870 villages were devastated.

/By Trend/