NEW DELHI, Oct. 8 (UPI) -- More than 18,000 people are feared dead with many villages wiped out in Pakistan, India and Afghanistan after a massive quake rocked the area Saturday morning.
A Pakistani military spokesman said Saturday the death toll could rise beyond 18,000 killed, according to several reports.
New Delhi Television, an Indian news channel a powerful quake also hit several parts of Afghanistan and northern India Saturday.
"It measured 7.4 on the Richter scale, " the Channel said in its morning news bulletin. Other sources placed it at 7.6.
The epicenter of the quake was at Shipal KMasjid, 95 kilometers north-northeast of Islamabad, country's capital.
A report said in Pakistan's capital Islamabad, buildings shook and walls swayed for about a minute just before 9 o'clock local time Saturday morning.
Two buildings of the Margalla Towers residential complex collapsed in Islamabad and dozens of people were feared trapped in the rubble.
"The administration has begun rescue and relief operations. Rescue teams have been dispatched to the remote villages that are worst affected by the quake in and around Muzaffarabad," said another report from Islamabad.
Aftershocks contined in nearby Rawalpindi, Lahore, Peshawar and Quetta, which is near the Afghan border.
"Tremors were also felt in Afghanistan's capital Kabul, "said a news report from Kabul.
