7.3-Magnitude Earthquake Kills 407 on Iraq-Iran Border

The death toll from Sunday’s powerful 7.3-magnitude earthquake along the Iraq-Iranian border climbed to 407 and with thousands more people reported injured, according to Iran’s state TV. As of Monday morning, Iranian Red Crescent officials said some 70,000 people were in need of shelter and structural damage was extensive throughout the region. Rescue workers searched for survivors throughout the night and were continuing operations early Monday. More than 230 are dead in Sarpol-e Zahab, the hardest-hit of Iranian cities, where a hospital was demolished and staff and patients were trapped in the rubble. The quake’s epicenter was located near the border town of Halabja in Iraq, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said, and the rumbles were felt in Baghdad and as far away as Israel.