Roundup: Death toll of Paksitan-Afghanistan quake rises to 350 as rescue operation in full swing

The Pakistani government, army and charity organizations continued rescue efforts on Tuesday after a powerful 7.5-magnitude earthquake killed 350 people in the country and neighboring Afghanistan on Monday.

Local media reported the death toll in northwestern Pakistan has already crossed 270 with over 2,000 injured. However, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) confirmed 230 deaths and 1,629 injuries.

Most of the rescue teams have been dispatched to the northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province, one of the worst-hit areas near the epicenter in the Hindu Kush Mountain along Pakistan-Afghanistan border, where 185 people were killed and 2,102 houses damaged.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visited the quake-affected area of KPK province on Tuesday.

Sharif promised that compensation would be announced after consultation with Chief Minister of KPK Pervez Khattak.

"No stone will be left unturned for relief and rehabilitation of people," he told the local residents following his meeting with key government officials.

Chief Minister Khattak said authorities were recording the losses in the province and they would be in a position to comment on the relief measures after a complete assessment.

The provincial government has dispatched 2,000 tents, 1,000 blankets and 2,000 floor mats to quake-hit areas, Information Minister of KPK Mushtaq Ghani said.

He also said the provincial government would provide a compensation money of 300,000 rupees (about 3,000 U.S. dollars) to the families of the killed.

The NDMA said they have dispatched 2,000 tents to KPK province on Monday and more relief supplies will arrive on Tuesday.

An MI-17 helicopter will carry out rescue operation in the remote areas and a nine-bed mobile hospital with a team of surgeons has been dispatched to KPK province, said the NDMA.

Asim Bajwa, spokesperson of the Pakistani Army's media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said in a tweet that a special C-130 cargo plane with 7 tons of ration, 2,500 ready meals, additional medical teams, 1,000 tents and blankets, was flying to KPK's Chitral area Tuesday.

Twenty tons of ration, 10,000 ready meals, 1,000 tents, 500 blankets have been dispatched by road for distribution in Dir District. An army relief camp and various ration distribution points have also been established, the spokesperson added.

The Karakoram Highway, which was blocked at 45 different places by the quake-triggered landslides, has been partially cleared so far.

Two army helicopters were also participating in ongoing relief missions, one in the KPK and another in the Gilgit Baltistan area which was also badly hit by the strong earthquake.

Spokesperson of the Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS) Khalid bin Majeed said their workers have rescued and gave on-the-spot treatment to more than 500 injured people in all affected areas and shifted them to hospitals.

The Medical teams of the PRSC have established camps in Malakand division and Chitral, which are the most affected regions with less medical facilities.

The international community, including India, the United States, China and the UN, have expressed sorrow over the losses of lives and offered help to quake victims.

The quake rocked Paksitan and neighboring Afghanistan at about 2:09 p.m. local time (0909 GMT) and its epicenter was located in Mount Hindu Kush along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, with a depth of 193 km.

The meteorological office said over 20 aftershocks followed the major shock in the same area.

Meanwhile, Afghan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani said on Tuesday that the death toll of the earthquake in Afghanistan has risen to 115 while the number of injuries has gone up to 538.

A total of 7,630 homes, 12 schools, 17 mosques, 20 office buildings have been damaged in nine provinces, Ghani said on his twitter account.

Rescue and relief workers increased emergency response to victims of the deadly disaster in northern and eastern provinces.

Monday's earthquake was also strongly felt in northern India and Indian-controlled Kashmir. Officials said four people were killed in the tremor.

Three died in Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir, while scores of people suffered injuries across Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

Houses were damaged in Srinagar, Budgam, Baramulla, Kupwara, Bandipora, Anantnag and Shopian in Indian-controlled Kashmir, with reports of injuries. Enditem