Al Ain/Dubai: A major earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale has rocked southern Pakistan, sending minor tremors as far as the UAE and India.
The quake killed at least 46 people in Pakistan, toppling scores of homes and sending people around the region rushing into the streets in panic.
Some Dubai residents said on Twitter they felt the ground beneath them rumble, especially those who were located on floors in high-rise buildings.
One office worker who was working on the 20th floor of a tower near Crowne Plaza Hotel in Dubai told Gulf News that he was scared when the building began to shake.
Computers were shaking and he felt dizzy as the building shook beneath him, he said, adding that his co-workers evacuated the building.
“This reminded me of the last tremors that happened in the UAE,” he said, referring to the tremors felt from an earthquake in Iran in April this year.
Residents in Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah also reported mild aftershocks.
The National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology (NCMS) in the UAE described the quake in Pakistan as a magnitude 8 event, adding that the UAE Met office was currently gathering more information on the minor aftershocks felt in the country.
