<p style="text-align: justify;">KABUL (Pajhwok): Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS) says the imported electricity from Uzbekistan has been cut off due to last night’s earthquake, leaving Kabul and several other provinces without power.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In a statement, DABS said on Tuesday that following the earthquake around 1:00am last night, Uzbekistan’s imported power lines were severed in two locations — from Naibabad to Samangan and from Khulom to Pul-i-Khumri. As a result, electricity supply has been cut off to Kabul, Baghlan, Parwan, Panjshir, Kapisa, Logar, Paktia, Ghazni and Maidan Wardak provinces.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">According to DABS, the imported power lines from Tajikistan were also damaged, leading to power outages in provinces that receive electricity from Tajikistan.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Technical teams have started work to restore the 220-kilovolt imported line from Uzbekistan, the statement added.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The 6.3-magnitude earthquake, which struck at 1:00am, shook several provinces including Samangan, Balkh, Kabul, Baghlan, Sar-i-Pul and Kunduz, with its epicenter in Khulom district of Balkh province.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The earthquake caused significant casualties and damage in Samangan and Balkh, and rescue teams have been dispatched to assist local residents.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Meanwhile, Public Health Ministry spokesman Dr. Sharafat Zaman said that, according to initial reports, at least 20 people were killed and around 320 others wounded in Samangan as a result of the earthquake.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">hz/ma</p>
