Rescuers in Iran are digging through the rubble of collapsed buildings to try to find survivors from two strong earthquakes which left at least 250 people dead. Two thousand people have been injured. There is a widespread damage to settlements around the north western state of Tabrez. Relief agencies are trying to help the survivors. A report from Teheran says, two earthquakes jolted North western Iran. Six villages were completely flattened and more than sixty others have been badly damaged. Thousands of people have spent the night in emergency shelters or in the open as the aftershocks continued to shake the area. Several hundred rescue workers along with helicopters have been sent to the area. Teams from at least nine Iranian provinces have joined the rescue operation. President Ahmedinejad has issued a special order for the authorities to make every effort to help the affected population.

The quakes, which struck yesterday within 11 minutes of each other, measured 6.2 and 6 on Richter scale. Its epicenter was 60 kilometers away from Tabrez near the city of Ahar. The quake was so powerful that six villages were reduced to rubbles while over 60 villages sustained more than 50 percent damage. Iran’s Fars News Agency reported that Iranian Red Crescent has converted a sports stadium into a shelter for 16000 people rendered homeless by the quake.
Tehran University’s Seismological Centre said the first earthquake hit around 5 pm yesterday with an epicenter just 60 kilometers from Tabriz, close to Ahar. The second one, a major aftershock struck just 11 minutes later from nearly the same spot. It was followed by a series of 17 smaller aftershocks. The disaster zone was located around 90 kilometers from the borders with Armenia and Azerbaijan, and around 190 kilometers from the border with Turkey. Iran is along several major fault lines and is prone to frequent earthquakes.