Source: Agence France-Presse (AFP)
Date: 27 May 2003

Earthquake measuring 5.8 on Richter scale hits Algeria

ALGIERS, May 27 (AFP) - A strong earthquake measuring 5.8 on the Richter scale jolted Algeria late Tuesday, according to seismological authorities in Strasbourg, France, as quoted by Algerian state radio. The temblor hit less than a week after a more powerful quake killed more than 2,200 people in a swath of northeastern Algeria. Hundreds of buildings threatened to collapse after having been damaged in the quake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale that struck on May 21. Massive relief operations were in full swing across the afflicted area although international teams were preparing to head home in the coming days.

Algerian state radio was broadcasting brief appeals for calm in between songs, as sirens of emergency services vehicles could be heard on the streets. The people made homeless by the first quake had finally begun to move into tent cities after delays in marshalling a government response to the crisis.

Scores of aftershocks have struck Algeria since the first quake hit last week. The death toll from last week's quake stood Tuesday at 2,218 dead and almost 9,500 injured. gd-rl/jah Algeria-quake-aftershock AFP Copyright (c) 2003 Agence France-Presse Received by NewsEdge Insight: 05/27/2003 14:01:03

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