Pakistan: 4.5 magnitude earthquake hits parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province

According to the ARY News, Pakistan's National Seismic Monitoring Centre (NSMC) confirmed that tremors were felt in Kohat and other surrounding areas on the evening of Saturday.

The depth of the earthquake was still unknown, NSMC said while the epicentre of the quake was Afghanistan.

So far, no casualties have been reported.

Earlier, on Sunday, an earthquake measuring 5.6 on the Richter scale jolted parts of Balochistan. The tremors were felt in Gwadar, Pasni, Ormara, and Kech areas of the province.

Meanwhile, the federal government imposed emergency in the rain and flood-affected areas on the instructions of the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, as the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) warned on Friday of more rains in Sindh and Balochistan in the wake of two system of monsoon currents over the next week, the Express Tribune reported.

Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman warned that more rains were expected in the coming weeks of August, therefore, the federal cabinet had declared a monsoon emergency. "All concerned federal and provincial agencies have been advised to stay on alert and take necessary precautions," she said.

"According to the Pakistan MET department, the country will experience more rains in the coming week. Islamabad, Kashmir, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa, Balochistan and Sindh will receive heavy rainfall from 6th to 9th of August," Rehman tweeted.

"Furthermore, the areas including Gilgit Baltistan will also experience strong winds and thundershowers from the 10th to 13th of August... In the meantime, all district commissioners and provincial administrations should be mobilized to prevent loss of lives," she added.

Earlier, the PMD warned of light to moderate rains in various districts of SIndh, including Karachi, from Saturday (today) till August 9, as a fourth system of monsoon currents entered the province. It said that another system would bring heavy rains with thunder between August 11 and 13, causing urban flooding.

"Two monsoon systems will bring rain in various districts of Sindh, including Karachi. There will be light to moderate rain between Saturday, August 6 and August 9, while heavy rains with thunder is expected from August 11 to 13," the PMD said.

According to the Met Office, the first system would enter from the Arabian Sea, while the second would come from the Bay of Bengal. There were fears of urban flooding due to heavy, rains resulting from the second system, it added.

The second monsoon systems would bring heavy rains in various districts of Sindh, including Badin, Thatth, Sajawal, Tando Muhammad Khan, Tando Allahyar, Dadu, Jamshoro and Qamber-Shahdad Kot. During August 11-13 period heavy rains might also occur in various districts of Balochistan, the Express Tribune reported.

"There is a risk of flooding in the rain-fed and local rivers and streams in Qila Saifullah, Loralai, Barkhan, Kohlu, Musakhel, Shirani, Sibi, Bolan, Kalat, Khuzdar, Lasbela, Awaran, Turbat, Panjgur, Pasni, Jiwani, and Ormara and Gwadar," the PMD said. (ANI)