Pakistan quake kills at least 20, injures hundreds

People gather outside a hospital following an earthquake in Harnai, Balochistan, Pakistan, October 7, 2021, in this still image obtained from video. Courtesy of QuettaVoice.com / Social Media via REUTERS

QUETTA, Pakistan (Reuters) -An earthquake of magnitude 5.7 hit southern Pakistan in the early hours of Thursday, killing 20 people, most of them women and children, and injuring about 300, at a time when many victims were asleep, authorities said.

The earthquake struck at a shallow depth of about 20 km (12 miles), with its epicentre 102 km (62 miles) east of the city of Quetta, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said.