Magnitude 6.3 earthquake rattles Afghanistan, several killed: AFP

A magnitude 6.3 earthquake hit western Afghanistan on Saturday killing 14 people and injuring 78, an official said, predicting the toll could rise amid reports of people buried under collapsed buildings.

"These are the numbers that have been brought to the central hospital so far, but this is not the final figure," the public health director of Herat province Mohammad Taleb Shahid told AFP. "We have information that people are buried under rubble."

The USGS said the epicentre was 40 kilometres (25 miles) northwest of the city of Herat and was quickly followed by three aftershocks of magnitude 5.5, 4.7 and 6.2.

An AFP journalist in the city said residents and shopkeepers fled buildings when the first quake hit around 11:00 am (0630 GMT), but that there were not yet reports of casualties or structural damage.

"People are worried and terrified. Women, men and children, everyone is out of their homes," he said. "There have been aftershocks. Everyone is scared and tense. No one wants to stay inside."

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