Quake death toll crosses 40,000: Pakistan media

Similar titles like "Death toll from earthquake crosses 40,000" are on the front pages of Pakistan' s leading English newspapers on Monday.

"The government on Sunday confirmed the death of over 19,000 people after a massive earthquake hit Pakistan a day earlier, but unofficial estimates put the death toll to over 40,000," said Daily Times.

Balakot, the tehsil headquarters of district Mansehra, has been completely razed to the ground and thousands of people are still buried under the debris, the paper said.

The News quoted Pakistani Minister for Kashmir Affairs, Faisal Hayat as saying that out of a population of 2.4 million in Azad Kashmir, "more than half is affected", apparently referring to those displaced, injured or killed.

According to a Nation report, Pakistan's metrological department warned that the aftershocks of the country's worst ever earthquake can continue for another week with magnitude of 4 - 6 on Richter scale. About 150 aftershocks were recoreded from Oct. 8 to Oct. 9.

Source: Xinhua