Geologists rule out volcanic eruption in NWFP

ISLAMABAD—Geologists after conducting a thorough examination of the reported site on Tuesday, in remote Alai valley in NWFP, have termed the reports as unfounded allaying fears of a volcano pushing through the earthquake-shattered mountains. Geologist Allah Bakhsh Kausar opined that people in the remote Alai valley had mistaken dust arising from landslides triggered by a strong aftershock on Sunday for smoke.
“The dust and fog hang in the air for a while because of the cold and it triggered panic in the area”. “There is no crack in the mountains, there is no eruption,” he said. Meanwhile four aftershocks measuring up to 5.2 on the Richter scale shook northern Pakistan early Wednesday, sparking fears of more landslides after the devastating October 8 earthquake, a met office official said.
There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage from the tremors, which came hours before a major United Nations quake donor’s conference in Geneva.
The heaviest aftershock, with a magnitude of 5.2, came at 6:43 am and there were three weaker tremors between 5:00 am and 9:00 am, Qamaruz Zaman, Chief Met office said. The shock woke people from their sleep in Islamabad and the devastated city of Muzaffarabad. “An aftershock with a magnitude of more than 5 can cause landslides in the hilly terrain,” Mr. Zaman said. World food aid programme spokesman said he fears that landslides can further hamper their operations.—INP