An earthquake of medium intensity measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale jolted North West Afghanistan on Friday. The tremors were felt in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), where people went into a tizzy and rushed outside their houses.

In Pakistan, tremors were felt in Lahore, Islamabad, Malakand, Mingora, Muzzafrabad and adjoining areas. Epicentre of the earth quake is believed to be in the Hindukush mountain range in Afghanistan.

In Kashmir, panic was witnessed in the morning, when mild tremors shook buildings and forced people to rush out into open areas. However, the people were relieved after the mild tremors stopped and there were no aftershocks thereafter.

A spokesman of the divisional administration said that an earthquake of moderate intensity struck the Kashmir valley at 10:28 am. Its magnitude was 5.5 on the Richter scale. The epicentre of the quake was at latitude 36.1 degrees north and longitude 70.5 degrees east, which is in the Pakistan-Afghanistan region.