10 dead, over 90 injured as quake hits North

While the epicentre of the quake was traced to Noney, a small hamlet, destruction and death was high some 150 km away in Imphal, where at least eight people died and more than 100 were injured, 55 of them seriously, according to government sources.

One of the two National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams that reached Imphal, the capital of Manipur, yesterday has been deployed in Noney (42km from Imphal) and Nungba (120km from Imphal) in Tamenglong district, the epicentre of the quake.

The US Geological Survey said the quake hit at 4:35am local time (23:05 GMT Sunday), 29km west-northwest of Imphal, capital of Manipur state, where dozens of buildings were damaged. “Damages to a few buildings, residential units and government offices have been reported, including damage to a six-storey building”, a home ministry statement said.

Residents of Imphal said electricity and telecoms links were down in the distant area and people fled their houses.

Almost 90 members of the National Disaster Response Force, a specialized federal force for natural disasters, have left to check on remote areas, police said.

“I was at home when the natural disaster struck and soon after, I came here to help with treating the injured”, said paramedic Tutul Longdeb.

The tremor was felt in Manipur, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh and some other states.

At least 50 persons were injured from all over the state, Army officials said.

Several buildings in Manipur secretariat and the landmark Ima market in Imphal developed cracks while some school structures collapsed.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday called up the Chief Ministers of the affected northeastern States following the 6.7 quake that shook the entire region.

In its initial assessment, USGS said “some casualties and damage are possible and the impact should be relatively localised”.

To discuss post-earthquake situation in Manipur & Northeast the Prime Minister spoke to Union home Minister Rajnath Singh, who is in Assam.

Tremors were also felt in some parts of northern and eastern India, as well as neighbouring countries of Nepal, Bangladesh and Myanmar.