Dalbandin, Pakistan Earthquake of 18 January 2011, Mw 7.2
At 20:23:23 UTC on Tuesday, January 18, 2011 (1:23:23 AM Wednesday, January 19, 2011 local time in Pakistan), a powerful earthquake with moment magnitude of 7.2 occurred at 43 km West of Dalbandin city in Pakistan’s Balochistan province in the southwest of the country near the border of Afghanistan. The epicenter coordinates of the Dalbandin earthquake was reported at 28.732N and 63.928E. The focal depth was estimated about 101 km and 68 km according to the Iranian Seismological Center and US Geological Survey, respectively. The duration of the earthquake lasted for 30 seconds. In addition to Pakistan, the shaking was felt in the southern Afghanistan, Iran’s southeastern cities including Iranshahr, Khash and Zahedan and some parts of the south Khorasan province, as well as the northern states of India such as Delhi, Rajasthan and Haryana and also in United Arabic Emirates. Due to occurrence of the deep-focus earthquake and large distances of the its epicenter to populated areas, damages were fortunately low. This event appears to have occurred on a normal fault within the subducting Arabian–Ormara plate, where it descends beneath a southern promontory of the Eurasian plate. The earthquake left 2 causalities and injured many people.
