Strong quake jolts sparsely populated Iran; no damage

Iran’s state TV is reporting a magnitude 6.1 earthquake has jolted a sparsely populated area in the country’s southeast. There are no immediate reports of damage or casualties. (Photo by Blondinrikard Fröberg/Flickr, CC BY 2.0)

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s state TV is reporting a magnitude 6.1 earthquake has jolted a sparsely populated area in the country’s southeast. There are no immediate reports of damage or casualties.

The U.S. Geological Survey has put the magnitude at 6.

The Friday quake jolted Hojedk town, about 1,100 kilometres (683 miles) southeast of the capital Tehran. The farming town has a population of 3,000 and is frequently hit by quakes.

Last month, a magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck western Iran, killing 530 and injuring more than 9,000 people. In 2003, a magnitude 6.6 quake flattened the historic southern city of Bam, killing 26,000 people.

Iran is located on major seismic faults and averages a quake per day.