Deadly 7.3 Quake Strikes Iraq-Iran Boarder Region

Google Maps showing the Halabja area on the border of Iran and Iraq.
Google Maps showing the Halabja area on the border of Iran and Iraq.

Rescuers continue to comb through the rubble in the aftermath of the deadly earthquake that rocked the border area between Iraq and Iran on Sunday in an effort to locate additional survivors.

Thousands of people near the epicenter were injured and well over 400 others perished as the buildings collapsed during the magnitude 7.3 quake struck just outside Halabja, approximately 140 miles northeast of Baghdad during late evening on Sunday. Within hours, at least 50 powerful aftershocks followed the quake.

The deadly shaker is the largest to occur in that area since 1967, and was felt as far away as Turkey, Israel and the United Arab Emirates. In 2003, Iran suffered a far deadlier quake where 26,000 people died in the southern city of Bam.[xyz-ihs snippet=”Adsense-responsive”]The Iranian government say that at least 70,000 people have been made homeless because of the catastrophic event.