By John Newland, Staff Writer, NBC News
A magnitude-7.8 earthquake struck Iran on Tuesday, according to the United States Geographical Survey.
Reuters cited witnesses as saying that tall buildings shook as far as way as New Delhi, India, with the tremors sending people running into the streets. Intense shaking was also felt in southern Pakistan.
The quake struck at 3:44 p.m. local time (6:44 a.m. ET) in southeastern Iran, about 50 miles east of the city of Khash and near the Pakistani border, the USGS reported.
The epicenter was in a thinly populated area, according to maps from the European-Mediterranean?Seismological Agency.
The nearest city of any size, Khash, has a population of 70,000, the agency said.
According to the USGS, about 232,000 people live in areas where the shaking was strong; more than 2 million occupy areas where it was moderate; and another million are in territories where it was classified as light.
Soon after the quake, reports from those who felt it came pouring in to the EMSA from places including Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.
A witness in Karachi, Pakistan, which is almost 400 miles from the epicenter, said, "I felt my laptop and table shake noticeably."
Pakistan state television said aftershocks were rattling the region at 7:30 a.m. ET.
In Fujairah, UAE, slightly farther away, a witness reported to EMSA "some shaking and trembling" and "everyone on the streets," adding, "Hanging things were swinging."
In New Delhi, about 1,500 miles away, a witness reported feeling two shocks a few second apart. "The first was short and slight, and the second was stronger and lasted longer -- maybe 10 seconds."
Tuesday's quake was the second significant one in Iran in a week.
An April 9 earthquake near the country's only nuclear power plant killed 37 people and injured at least 850 more, leaving entire villages devastated.
Despite the scare caused by that quake, Iran pledged that it would continue to build more reactors in the heavily seismic region, which is hundreds of miles from the site of the latest temblor, on the other side of the country's south.?
Reuters and NBC News' Mujid Ahmed contributed to this report.
This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
Related:
'Devastating' quake strikes near Iran's Bushehr nuclear plant
Full Iran coverage from NBC News
This story was originally published on Tue Apr 16, 2013 6:58 AM EDT
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