Residents in Pakistan’s Balakot thought earthquake jolted them from sleep

ISLAMABAD: Residents in the quake-prone Balakot town in Pakistan’s Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province Tuesday said they were woken by “loud explosions” and thought a fresh tremor must have hit the region when Indian Air Force jets pounded a large terror training camp.

Balakot town in Pakistan’s north-western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province was destroyed during the 2005 Kashmir earthquake and was rebuilt with assistance from Saudi Arabia.

Residents in the mountainous area town told reporters they were woken by loud explosions.

Residents in several towns near Balakot reported hearing explosions early on Tuesday.

Mohammad Adil, a farmer in Jaba village, said he and his family were woken at about 03:00 by “a huge explosion”.

He said they thought an earth quake must have hit the region.

“Then we heard jets flying over. We went to the place in the morning. There was a huge crater and four or five houses were destroyed,” he said.
(AGENCIES)