Rescuers were Tuesday picking their way through rugged terrain and pockets of Taliban insurgency in the search for survivors after a massive quake hit Pakistan and Afghanistan, killing at least 277 people.

The toll was expected to rise as search teams reach remote areas that were cut off by the powerful 7.5 magnitude quake, which triggered landslides and stampedes as it toppled buildings and severed communication lines.


Pakistan’s military has been mobilised and India — whose relationship with Islamabad is often prickly — said it stood ready to help.

A man clears rubbles from the roof of his house after an earthquake, in Fayzabad capital of Badakhshan province, Afghanistan October 26, 2015. A powerful earthquake struck a remote area of northeastern Afghanistan on Monday, shaking the capital Kabul, as shockwaves were felt in northern India and in Pakistan's capital, where hundreds of people ran out of buildings as the ground rolled beneath them. REUTERS/Stringer          EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVE
A man clears rubble from the roof of his house after an earthquake, in Fayzabad capital of Badakhshan province, Afghanistan October 26, 2015. A powerful earthquake struck a remote area of northeastern Afghanistan on Monday, shaking the capital Kabul, as shockwaves were felt in northern India and in Pakistan’s capital, where hundreds of people ran out of buildings as the ground rolled beneath them. REUTERS/Stringer EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVE

In the most horrifying episode to emerge so far from the quake, 12 young Afghan girls were crushed to death in a stampede as they tried to flee their shaking school building.

The bulk of the casualties were reported from Pakistan, where 214 people were killed and more than 1,800 injured, disaster management authorities said.

Residents search for belongings in the rubbles of a house after it was damaged by an earthquake in Peshawar, Pakistan, October 26, 2015. A major earthquake struck the remote Afghan northeast on Monday, killing at least 135 people in Afghanistan and nearby northern Pakistan and sending shock waves as far as New Delhi, officials said. REUTERS/FAYAZ AZIZ
Residents search for belongings in the rubbles of a house after it was damaged by an earthquake in Peshawar, Pakistan, October 26, 2015. A major earthquake struck the remote Afghan northeast on Monday, killing at least 135 people in Afghanistan and nearby northern Pakistan and sending shock waves as far as New Delhi, officials said. REUTERS/FAYAZ AZIZ

“Many houses and buildings have collapsed in the city,” said Arbab Muhammad Asim, district mayor for the northwestern city of Peshawar.

Many people were trapped under piles of rubble, with officials warning that the toll was set to rise.

A man rides his bicycle next to damaged structures, after an earthquake in Ghazni, Afghanistan October 26, 2015. A powerful earthquake struck a remote area of northeastern Afghanistan on Monday, shaking the capital Kabul, as shockwaves were felt in northern India and in Pakistan's capital, where hundreds of people ran out of buildings as the ground rolled beneath them. REUTERS/Stringer  EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVE
A man rides his bicycle next to damaged structures, after an earthquake in Ghazni, Afghanistan October 26, 2015. A powerful earthquake struck a remote area of northeastern Afghanistan on Monday, shaking the capital Kabul, as shockwaves were felt in northern India and in Pakistan’s capital, where hundreds of people ran out of buildings as the ground rolled beneath them. REUTERS/Stringer EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVE

“The building was swinging like a pendulum, it felt as if the heavens would fall,” Peshawar shop owner Tufail Ahmed told AFP.

Afghan officials said at least 63 people were confirmed dead and hundreds more injured, with casualties reported from around half a dozen of the country’s 34 provinces.

Pakistani residents gather next to the rubble of damaged houses following an earthquake in Bajaur on October 26, 2015. A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake which rocked parts of South Asia killed more than 180 people, including 12 Afghan girls crushed in a stampede as they fled their collapsing school. AFP PHOTO / Anwarullah KHAN
Pakistani residents gather next to the rubble of damaged houses following an earthquake in Bajaur on October 26, 2015. A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake which rocked parts of South Asia killed more than 180 people, including 12 Afghan girls crushed in a stampede as they fled their collapsing school. AFP PHOTO / Anwarullah KHAN

The government has implored aid agencies for assistance.

But large swathes of Badakhshan, the remote province where the epicentre is located, and other areas are effectively controlled by the Taliban, posing a huge challenge to any official aid efforts.

A Pakistani boy stands on the rubble of houses after an earthquake in Kohat on October 26, 2015. A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake killed at least 70 people as it rocked south Asia, including 12 Afghan girls crushed to death in a stampede as they tried to flee their collapsing school. Thousands of frightened people rushed into the streets in Afghanistan, Pakistan and India as the quake shook a swathe of the subcontinent. AFP PHOTO / BASIT SHAH
A Pakistani boy stands on the rubble of houses after an earthquake in Kohat on October 26, 2015. A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake killed at least 70 people as it rocked south Asia, including 12 Afghan girls crushed to death in a stampede as they tried to flee their collapsing school. Thousands of frightened people rushed into the streets in Afghanistan, Pakistan and India as the quake shook a swathe of the subcontinent. AFP PHOTO / BASIT SHAH

“Today’s earthquake was the strongest one felt in the recent decades,” said Afghanistan’s chief executive Abdullah Abdullah.

“Initial reports show a big loss of life and huge financial losses in Badakhshan, Takhar, Nangarhar, Kunar and other regions. Exact numbers are not known because phone lines are down and communication has been cut off in many areas.”

Pakistani paramilitary soldiers observe the damaged wall of a fort used by security forces after an earthquake in Peshawar on October 26, 2015. At least 17 people including eight children were killed in Pakistan when a 7.5 magnitude quake struck in Afghanistan October 26, officials said. AFP PHOTO / A MAJEED
Pakistani paramilitary soldiers observe the damaged wall of a fort used by security forces after an earthquake in Peshawar on October 26, 2015. At least 17 people including eight children were killed in Pakistan when a 7.5 magnitude quake struck in Afghanistan October 26, officials said. AFP PHOTO / A MAJEED

‘They could not even talk’ 

In remote northern Takhar, a dozen Afghan schoolgirls, all under 16, were trampled to death as they rushed to escape their classrooms when the quake struck.

Bystanders rushed the dazed and terrified survivors to the hospital, many lying limp in the arms of their rescuers, as doctors tried reviving some of them by pumping their chests.

Pakistani policemen stand beside debris of collapsed houses after an earthquake in Kohat on October 26, 2015. A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake killed at least 70 people as it rocked south Asia, including 12 Afghan girls crushed to death in a stampede as they tried to flee their collapsing school. AFP PHOTO / BASIT SHAH
Pakistani policemen stand beside debris of collapsed houses after an earthquake in Kohat on October 26, 2015. A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake killed at least 70 people as it rocked south Asia, including 12 Afghan girls crushed to death in a stampede as they tried to flee their collapsing school. AFP PHOTO / BASIT SHAH

“When the relatives of the dead students came to collect their bodies, they were so distressed that they could not even talk to authorities to record their names,” said Hafizullah Safai, head of the Takhar health department.

The quake was centred near Jurm in northeast Afghanistan, 250 kilometres (160 miles) from the capital Kabul and at a depth of 213.5 kilometres, the US Geological Survey said.

An Afghan woman rushes to a hospital to check on her daughter who was injured, after an earthquake at a hospital in Jalalabad, Afghanistan October 26, 2015. A powerful earthquake struck a remote area of northeastern Afghanistan on Monday, shaking the capital Kabul, as shockwaves were felt in northern India and in Pakistan's capital, where hundreds of people ran out of buildings as the ground rolled beneath them. REUTERS/ Parwiz
An Afghan woman rushes to a hospital to check on her daughter who was injured, after an earthquake at a hospital in Jalalabad, Afghanistan October 26, 2015. A powerful earthquake struck a remote area of northeastern Afghanistan on Monday, shaking the capital Kabul, as shockwaves were felt in northern India and in Pakistan’s capital, where hundreds of people ran out of buildings as the ground rolled beneath them. REUTERS/ Parwiz

The quake, which lasted at least one minute, shook buildings in Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, sending thousands of frightened people rushing into the streets.

It was also felt in Tajikstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.

Live footage from an Afghan news broadcast filmed in Kabul showed the anchor abandoning his desk as the quake shook the cameras.

Pakistani residents gather at a damaged market following an earthquake in Sargodha on October 26, 2015. A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake killed at least 70 people as it rocked south Asia, including 12 Afghan girls crushed to death in a stampede as they tried to flee their collapsing school. Thousands of frightened people rushed into the streets in Afghanistan, Pakistan and India as the quake shook a swathe of the subcontinent. AFP PHOTO / SHAHID BUKHARI
Pakistani residents gather at a damaged market following an earthquake in Sargodha on October 26, 2015. A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake killed at least 70 people as it rocked south Asia, including 12 Afghan girls crushed to death in a stampede as they tried to flee their collapsing school. Thousands of frightened people rushed into the streets in Afghanistan, Pakistan and India as the quake shook a swathe of the subcontinent. AFP PHOTO / SHAHID BUKHARI

Restaurants and office buildings emptied in Islamabad, with cracks appearing in some buildings but no major damage reported.

Hundreds of people in northern India poured onto the streets from office blocks, hospitals and homes.

In Delhi — more than 1,000 kilometres from the epicentre — the metro ground to a halt during the tremor.

Residents clear the rubble of a house after it was damaged by an earthquake in Peshawar, Pakistan October 26, 2015. A powerful earthquake struck a remote area of northeastern Afghanistan on Monday, shaking the capital Kabul, as shockwaves were felt in northern India and in Pakistan's capital, where hundreds of people ran out of buildings as the ground rolled beneath them. REUTERS/Khuram Parvez
Residents clear the rubble of a house after it was damaged by an earthquake in Peshawar, Pakistan October 26, 2015. A powerful earthquake struck a remote area of northeastern Afghanistan on Monday, shaking the capital Kabul, as shockwaves were felt in northern India and in Pakistan’s capital, where hundreds of people ran out of buildings as the ground rolled beneath them. REUTERS/Khuram Parvez

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter immediately after the quake, saying that India stood ready to assist, including in Afghanistan and Pakistan if required.

Afghan residents examine a damaged house after an earthquake in Raman Kheel village in the Panjshir valley on October 26, 2015. A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake killed at least 70 people as it rocked south Asia on October 26, including 12 Afghan girls crushed to death in a stampede as they tried to flee their collapsing school.  AFP PHOTO
Afghan residents examine a damaged house after an earthquake in Raman Kheel village in the Panjshir valley on October 26, 2015. A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake killed at least 70 people as it rocked south Asia on October 26, including 12 Afghan girls crushed to death in a stampede as they tried to flee their collapsing school. AFP PHOTO

Pakistan mobilised troops and all military hospitals were put on high alert, army spokesman Lieutenant General Asim Bajwa said, with the air force also offering support.

Afghanistan is frequently hit by earthquakes, especially in the Hindu Kush mountain range, which lies near the junction of the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates.

Afghan school boys walk to look a damaged house following a powerful earthquake that could be felt across South Asia, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, Oct. 26, 2015. In Afghanistan's Takhar province, west of Badakhshan, at least 12 students at a girls' school were killed in a stampede as they tried to get out of the shaking buildings, a local official says. Sonatullah Taimor, the spokesman for the Takhar provincial governor, says another 30 girls have been taken to the hospital in the provincial capital of Taluqan. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
Afghan school boys walk to look a damaged house following a powerful earthquake that could be felt across South Asia, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, Oct. 26, 2015. In Afghanistan’s Takhar province, west of Badakhshan, at least 12 students at a girls’ school were killed in a stampede as they tried to get out of the shaking buildings, a local official says. Sonatullah Taimor, the spokesman for the Takhar provincial governor, says another 30 girls have been taken to the hospital in the provincial capital of Taluqan. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

The epicentre of Monday’s quake was just a few hundred kilometres from the site of a 7.6 magnitude quake that struck in October 2005, killing more than 75,000 people and displacing some 3.5 million more, although that quake was much shallower.

In Nepal twin quakes in May killed more than 8,900 people, triggered landslides and destroyed half a million homes.