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Quake kills more than 18,000 in South Asia
(AP)
Updated: 2005-10-09 18:10
Afghanistan appeared to suffer the least damage. In its east, an 11-year-old
girl was crushed to death when a wall in her home collapsed, police official
Gafar Khan said.
A U.S. military spokesman, Lt. Col. Jerry O'Hara, said the quake was felt at
Bagram, the main American base in Afghanistan, but he had no reports of damage
at bases around the country.
The United Nations sent an emergency coordination team to Pakistan.
President Bush offered condolences, and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
said the United States was ready to help.
"At this difficult time, the United States stands with its friends in
Pakistan and India, just as they stood with us and offered assistance after
Hurricane Katrina," Rice said in a statement.
In Pakistan, Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz ordered the military
to extend "all-out help" to quake-hit areas and appealed to the nation to stay
calm.
Helicopters and C-130 transport planes took troops and supplies to damaged
areas, but landslides and rain hindered rescue efforts.
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