A pair of earthquakes struck near a nuclear power plant in southwest Iran, capping an eventful morning in the country.
The first quake, measured at a 4.9 magnitude on the Richter scale, occurred around 9 a.m. local time in Bushehr province at a depth of roughly 6 miles, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. A 4.5-magnitude aftershock took place about 30 minutes later.
The epicenters were located roughly 12 miles from the city of Borazjan, which isn’t far from the Bushehr nuclear plant.
No casualties were initially reported after rescue teams were deployed, Jahangir Dehqani, managing director of the Bushehr crisis management agency, told the state-run IRNA news. A report by the Times of Israel said Dehqani later told IRNA seven people were injured and four were hospitalized. There were no reports of damage to the Bushehr nuclear facility.
Another earthquake, measuring 5.1 in magnitude, struck the same region along the Iranian coastline, late last month.
The Bushehr facility, which became operational in 2010, sits on an active fault line and is designed to withstand earthquakes measuring up to a 9 magnitude on the Richter scale.
The Russian-built power plant is Iran’s first, but it has been plagued with construction and operational issues over the years.
The Wednesday morning earthquakes hit after Iran launched missile attacks on Iraqi bases that host U.S. troops, and a Ukraine International Airlines passenger plane, a Boeing 737 airliner that was carrying nearly 200 passengers and crew, crashed shortly after taking off from Tehran.
