According to the National Seismic Monitoring Center (NSMC), tremors were felt in parts of northern Pakistan including Peshawar, Nowshera, Shabqadar and Mardan around 4:30 pm on Thursday.
The epicenter of the earthquake was 237 km west of Chitral, NSMC said.
The tremors were also felt in and around Charsadda, Islamabad, and recorded a magnitude of 5.6 on the Richter scale, with a depth of 190 km.
Pakistan Meteorological Department also shared details of the earthquake via Twitter saying, “Earthquake occurred on 19-01-2023 at 16:30 PST. Mag: 5.6. Depth: 190 km. Lat: 35.89 N. Long: 71.39 E.” Epicenter: 37 km west of Chitral.
An earthquake is originated on 19-01-2023 at 16:30 PST
— Pak Met Department محکمہ موسمیات (@pmdgov) January 19, 2023
Mag: 5.6
Depth: 190km
Lat: 35.89 N
Long: 71.39 E
Epicentre: 37 km west of Chitral
#earthquake pic.twitter.com/YkWvs2njvu
The NSMC added that two more earthquakes of moderate intensity were felt in Bisham, 70 km from KP and 28 km south of Kharan.
In the immediate aftermath of the earthquake, residents of the affected cities took to Twitter to share their experiences, while others stirred and began praying for safety.
A user said: Severe earthquake shocks in Abbottabad! Lasted more than 10 seconds.
Severe Earthquake JOLTS Abbottabad! Lasts for more than 10 seconds
— Mohammed Ali🍁 (@AliAbbasiatd) January 19, 2023
Ya Allah Khair#EarthQuake
Earlier this month, another earthquake was felt in parts of Pakistan on January 5.
The NSMC said then that the tremors had a magnitude of 5.8 on the Richter scale, while the US Geological Survey claimed that the quake recorded a magnitude of 5.5 on the Richter scale.
The effects of the earthquake were also felt in Peshawar, Lower Dir, Chitral, Khyber District, Waziristan, Tank, Bajaur, Mardan, Parachinar, Murree, Mansehra, Abbottabad, Multan, Sheikhupura, Chiniot and Kotli.
Additionally, just a day earlier, a low-intensity earthquake measuring 4.3 on the Richter scale struck parts of Punjab at 3:04 pm, the NSMC said.
