5.7 Quake rocks Iran

CNN) -- A series of earthquakes struck western Iran early Friday, killing dozens and flattening entire villages.
At least 66 people were killed and 988 injured, a medical official in Lurestan province told the official IRNA news agency.
......
The quakes were centered near Boroujerd and Doroud, two industrial cities about 210 miles southwest of Tehran, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.
Provincial official Ali Barani said about 200 villages were damaged, some flattened, The Associated Press reported.
CNN

The report says that the Quake hit at 7:45 in Iran, meaning that many were inside their homes at the time. The story is still developing, but I hope that Iran's government acts quickly and efficiently. Can we get any of our Iranian users to report in on this? (And rassure us that you are still there)

News BBC



At least 66 people have been killed and 980 injured by several earthquakes in western Iran, officials said.

The quakes, with magnitudes of up to 6.0, centred on remote villages between the industrial towns of Doroud and Boroujerd in the province of Lorestan.

About 330 villages have been damaged - some completely flattened, Lorestan's disaster control committee chief said.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called for aid to be rushed to the victims, and prayed for the injured.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the US was prepared to offer humanitarian assistance to Iran.

Lorestan's governor said hospitals were full to capacity

Sure is lots of Earthques in Iran lately:

• 21 Feb 2005: 612 die when 6.4 magnitude quake hits Zarand, Kerman province
  
• 26 Dec 2003: 40,000 killed when 6.7 magnitude quake devastates Bam
  
• 10 May 1997: 7.1 magnitude quake kills more than 1,500 near Afghan border
  
• 28 Feb 1997: 5.5 magnitude quake kills about 1,000 in north-western Iran
  
• 21 June 1990: About 40,000 killed by 7.7 magnitude quake. Caspian regions of Gilan and Zanjan devastated.
  
• 11 June 1981: 6.8 magnitude quake destroys town of Golbaf, killing more than 1,000

[edit on 31/3/06 by Souljah]

Does the US have the tech for this?

Threatening Iran on a whole new level?

Originally posted by Manincloak
Does the US have the tech for this?

Threatening Iran on a whole new level?

No.

Boroujerd and Doroud sit neatly on the Zagros range, mountains formed by a fault line between the Eurasian and Arabian plates. This region is the most active tectonic are in the country, and hosts the highest concentration of earthquakes in the area. This was no mlaicious deed, and I cannot entertain the notion that the US even has the tech to pull this off. What we have here is a humanitarian crisis in the middle of and already tense debate about Iran's nuclear standoff. There are people caught up in the middle of this earthquake, and 'over 200 villages leveled'. It's a little more important than trying to blame the US.

Earthquakes in Iran: A geological perspective

[edit on 31-3-2006 by TheGoodDoctorFunk]

Fair enough Iran is on a fault line, but couldn't this be linked to there bomb testing?