A magnitude-6.1 earthquake has rattled Pakistan and Afghanistan, including both capitals, killing a young Pakistani girl and injuring five others, officials said.

At least three people were injured in Afghanistan.

The US Geological Survey reported the quake’s centre was in north-east Afghanistan near the Pakistan border, about 22 miles south of Jarm in the Hindu Kush region. It had a depth of 119 miles.

TV footage showed people in Islamabad fleeing offices and schools in panic.

Residents stand on stairs outside their offices in Lahore (AP/KM Chaudary)
Residents stand on stairs outside their offices in Lahore (AP/KM Chaudary)

Rana Hamid Ali, an employee at a private company, said the quake was so strong he started running towards the stairs instead of using the office elevator to get out of the building.

Another resident, Azeem Chaudhry, said his home’s walls swayed when the quake struck.

At least one girl was killed and five others injured when roofs collapsed on mud-brick homes in the village of Lasbela in Pakistan’s Baluchistan province, said local government official Izat Nazir Baluch.

He said authorities are still trying to assess the damage in the province.

The quake was felt in the Afghan capital Kabul, and an official said at least three people were injured in north-eastern Badakhshan province, near the border with Pakistan.

Gul Mohammad Bedar, deputy governor in the province, said he had not received details on how the three were injured. He said the tremor caused cracks in the walls of a number of houses.

Mr Bedar added that officials were trying to collect more details from remote villages in Jarm.

Authorities face problems getting details in the remote district where the Taliban has a strong presence.

The earthquake was also felt in the Indian capital New Delhi and the Indian Kashmir region. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage to buildings there.

A magnitude-7.6 quake in 2005 killed thousands of people in Pakistan and Kashmir.