Pakistan's army says it fears heavy damage in northern areas. Barbara Plett reports from Islamabad.
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| HUNDREDS FEARED DEAD |
The quake - measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale - reportedly buried several entire villages in Pakistan.
The epicentre of the quake was 6.2 miles below ground in the Kashmir region, 60 miles north-east of Islamabad and 75 miles north-west of Srinagar.
"The death toll could be in hundreds," Pakistan Brigadier Javed Cheema said.
Most casualties were in the northern area of Mansehra and from Pakistan's sector of the divided Himalayan territory of Kashmir, he added.
The quake was felt across northern and central India and into Afghanistan.
Screaming people rushed out of flats in the Indian capital New Delhi as the tremor began.
"We felt the whole earth shaking, the scaffoldings swaying left and right," said Ram Kripal, a 33-year-old construction worker.
"There was big noise from the clattering of glass panes. It continued for about 15-20 seconds, but it felt like a lifetime."
The area where the quake took place is known for its frequent seismic activity and experts have long predicted an imminent major earthquake in the Himalayan region.
The quake in Kashmir had a magnitude of at least 7.6. The epicentre was 80km (50 miles) north-east of Islamabad.
Pakistan's interior ministry says several villages have been wiped out. A government official said the eventual death toll could be "very high".
Rescuers are trying to reach dozens of residents feared trapped in collapsed buildings in Islamabad.
Residents in the Afghan capital, Kabul, and India's capital, Delhi, are also reported to have felt the tremor.
At least 60 people, including 15 soldiers, have been confirmed dead in Indian-administered Kashmir.
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