Eerie sound of birds brought killer earthquake

ISLAMABAD, Sunday (AFP) - The piercing screeches of birds fleeing their perches in the trees of Islamabad heralded the arrival of Saturday's killer earthquake.

As thousands of trees in the green city swayed and buckled, a menacing rumbling sound came up from the ground while the windows of houses and buildings in the Pakistani capital rattled and shook.

"The sound of the birds screaming really added to the feeling of fear. You could see crows circling above," said an AFP correspondent.

"I never felt such a powerful earthquake in my life. The minarets of the mosques were shaking," added security guard Mohammad Akram.

"People came out from their homes and buildings when the quake hit. Some of them started praying to God," Akram said.

In the first minutes after the earthquake measuring at least 7.6 on the Richter Scale struck early Saturday, thousands of people fled their houses and sought the relative safety of Islamabad's broad tree-lined avenues.

The ground shook for over 30 seconds, rocking buildings and making it almost impossible to walk without falling over.

A second, less severe, jolt lasted about five seconds. All along the main roads terrified people were sitting or lying down, sobbing or looking confused. Many mosques started reciting special prayers straight afterwards.

"We have been receiving calls from our relatives and friends who are worried about us," said Nasima Akhtar, a resident in Rawalpindi. "It was the strongest quake in my life."

The quake was also felt strongly in the city of Lahore further south.

"It was so severe in Lahore that we rushed out of our homes and we are still outside," said Sohail Ahmed, a local resident contacted by telephone.

The epicenter of the quake was around 100 kilometres (62 miles) northeast of Islamabad in the disputed Kashmir region, and many people across Pakistan were left desperatly worried about missing relatives.