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12/05/2011

Spain rocked by earthquake

Emergency services are sifting their way through rubble from collapsed buildings in the Spanish town of Lorca after an earthquake which left eight dead.


It's reported as many as a third of the town's 90,000 residents spent the night outdoors after the 5.3 magnitude earthquake.


A military task force of 200 troops is in the area backing up emergency services and providing aid.


Earthquakes with substantial damage are rare in Spain although the south of the country has extensive faultlines.


Roger Musson, a seismologist at the British Geological Survey, said: "It's only really caused such damage because it was so shallow and the epicentre was so close to the town of Lorca. A magnitude 5.2 is not that big - it's not considered a large earthquake."


Dozens of injured people were treated at the scene and a field hospital was set up in the town with a population of around 85,000.

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