Strong quake hits Albania; at least 2 dead, 150 injured

People were seen leaving homes to go to open areas. (AFP)

• US Geological Survey said the earthquake measured 6.4 in magnitude
• People reported seeing cracks in their apartment walls

TIRANA, Albania: A strong earthquake shook Albania early Tuesday, killing at least six people, injuring 300 and collapsing buildings.
The US Geological Survey said the magnitude-6.4 quake, which struck just before 4 a.m. local time, had an epicenter 30 kilometers northwest of the capital, Tirana, at a depth of 20 kilometers. Scores of aftershocks included three with preliminary magnitudes of between 5.1 and 5.4.
The quake collapsed at least three apartment buildings while people slept, and rescue crews were working to free people believed trapped in the rubble. There was no indication as to how many people might still be buried in the rubble.
Albanian President Ilir Meta said the situation in the town of Thumane, closest to the epicenter, was “very dramatic.”
“All efforts are being made to take the people out of the ruins,” he said, and called on the Cabinet to request international assistance.
Prime Minister Edi Rama said neighboring Kosovo was sending an emergency team to help with rescue efforts.
The bodies of three people were removed from a collapsed building in the coastal city of Durres, 33 kilometers west of the capital Tirana, the Defense Ministry said. Another two people were found dead and removed from the rubble of a building in Thumane, while one person died after jumping from his home to escape shaking from the quake in Kurbin, 50 kilometers north of the capital.
Health Minister Ogerta Manastirliu said some 300 injured people were treated in Durres, Tirana and Thumane.
All government agencies are on alert and “intensively working to save lives at the fatal spots in Durres and Thumane,” Rama said.
“It is a dramatic moment where we should preserve calm, stay alongside each other to cope with this shock,” he wrote on his Facebook page.
The quake was felt along the Albanian coast.
Authorities reported scores of aftershocks and called on people in the most affected areas to stay out of their homes and avoid driving in the affected areas to allow emergency vehicles free access. Many reported seeing cracks in their apartment walls.
At least three apartment buildings and the power distribution station were damaged in Thumane.
An earthquake in September in roughly the same area damaged hundreds of homes.