A man walks outside a damaged building after an earthquake stroked the area in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion Goga
FLOQ, Albania (Reuters) - Six earthquakes in the space of two hours, the first with a magnitude of 5.3, shook south-eastern Albania on Saturday, injuring four people and causing damage to 100 houses, authorities and eyewitnesses said.
Four people were hurt from the collapse of the walls, roofs and plaster of their houses, and were taken to hospital in the region's main town of Korce in eastern Albania, the Defence Ministry said.
A man leaves a damaged building after an earthquake stroked the area in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion Goga
"It was 06:30 when I went out to milk the cows when the earthquake struck. I woke up the children and the adults and we ran outside, all of us," Petrit, 60, told Reuters in the village of Floq, the epicenter of the earthquakes.
The roof of Petrit's house had collapsed over two rooms. Some 70 houses were damaged in Floq and the nearby village of Dvoran, the Defence Ministry said.
Half of the 100 damaged house were abandoned old structures, the Defence Ministry said. Soldiers were pitching military tents in Floq and firefighters were also there.
A man clears debris outside a damaged building after an earthquake stroked the area in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion Goga
Fifty families in the mostly-damaged neighborhood of Floq had abandoned their houses for fear of other quakes, finding shelter either in the military tents or with relatives, the villagers said.
The first earthquake had its epicenter 15 km southeast of the town of Korce at a depth of 14 km and was followed by another seven minutes later at a depth of 18 km in an area bordering Greece and North Macedonia.
Lower intensity tremors continued in Korce and the southern area of Gjirokaster, on the border with northern Greece.
Residents inspect a destroyed building after an earthquake stroked the area in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion Goga
(Reporting by Benet Koleka; Editing by Alexander Smith and Stephen Powell)
A resident walks over the rubble next to a damaged building after an earthquake stroked the area in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion GogaA resident holds a piece of wall inside a damaged building after an earthquake stroked the area in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion GogaA man clears debris outside a damaged building after an earthquake stroked the area in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion GogaA man cleans debris from a damaged building after an earthquake in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion GogaA woman looks on near a damaged building after an earthquake stroked the area in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion GogaMembers of rescue forces walk past a tent erected for the evacuated residents after an earthquake in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion GogaAn evacuated woman sits inside a tent at a temporary shelter erected after an earthquake in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion GogaEvacuated residents sit inside a tent at a temporary shelter erected after an earthquake in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion GogaA woman steps out of a tent erected for the evacuated residents after an earthquake in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion GogaTents are erected after an earthquake in Floq, Albania, June 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florion Goga
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