RESCUE teams have been scouring Afghanistan’s mountainous east for survivors of Sunday night’s devastating earthquake as the death toll rose to 1,400, with 3,000 people injured, an official said today.

The 6.0 magnitude quake hit several provinces, flattening villages and leaving people trapped under rubble for hours. It damaged or destroyed thousands of homes that were made mostly of mud bricks and wood.

“The injured are being evacuated, so these figures may change significantly,” said National Disaster Management Authority spokesman Yousaf Hammad. 

“The earthquake caused landslides in some areas, blocking roads, but they have been reopened and the remaining roads will be reopened to allow access to areas that were difficult to reach.”

The majority of casualties were in Kunar province, where most people live in steep river valleys separated by high mountains. 

Helicopters are being used to evacuate the injured to hospital and aid agencies said their teams were making journeys on foot to reach the most isolated areas.

Authorities have appealed for international help.

Sunday’s earthquake was the third strong one since the Taliban seized power in 2021 and the latest crisis to beset Afghanistan, which is reeling from deep cuts to aid funding, a weak economy and the forced return of millions of people from Iran and Pakistan.