GILGIT, Oct 8: At least two persons were reported killed and scores injured as a strong earthquake and aftershocks hit the Northern Areas on Saturday. The quake badly damaged the Karakoram Highway at different places and caused road blockades.

The tremor and aftershocks jolted the area from 8:52am till 3:46pm.

According to unofficial reports, at least two deaths one in Chilas and the other in Astore have been reported.

The officials confirmed the reports of four injured persons in various areas but added the scale of losses was minimal.

The sources said that the first jolt that struck the region at 8:52am was measured at 7.6 at Richter scale caused the heaviest landsliding in Gilgit, Hunza, Nagar, Gojal, Chilas, Astore, Baltistan and Ghizer and also blocked the 600 kilometre-long Karakoram Highway (KKH) from Gilgit to Rawalpindi at many places.

The roads leading from Gilgit to China, Chitral, Astore and Baltistan are reportedly closed for traffic as the jolts have shaken the roads where heavy landslides, bolders and rocks have blockaded the roads.

In some areas the passengers managed to remove small barriers but the huge sliding area could not be restored.

The quake also damaged water channels of powerhouses and irrigation in Hunza, Nagar, Astore, Ghizer and Baltistan, particularly in the hilly areas.

The sources said the quakes also disrupted the already shaky telecommunication system in the region.

A middle-aged man was killed in Nuagam Astore area. A minor boy sustained injuries when he was hit by stones in Thak Niat, Chilas, said Home Secretary Northern Areas, Capt (retd) Sardar Mohammad Abbas.

The quake also disrupted the telecommunications system in the region.

He said Gilgit has been cut off from the rest of the country whereas many roads were blocked by landslide.

He said massive landslidings have blocked Gilgit, Ghizer, Astore, Hunza, and Skardu roads.

The official said that KKH has been closed down for all kinds of traffic.—PPI/APP