5.9 Magnitude earthquake strikes Iran

A magnitude of 5.9 earthquake shook southwestern Iran along the Persian Gulf on Sunday (April 18), followed by over a dozen aftershocks, according to Iranian state TV.

The quake was some 100 kilometers (60 miles) from Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant around 11:00 am.

At least five people were injured, state-run IRNA news agency reports.

Three aftershocks of magnitude 4 followed the initial quake, the report said, as well as other weaker ones.

Iran's senior Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri, in a phone call with the Bushehr provincial governor, called for the immediate care of quake victims, the semiofficial ISNA news agency reported.

The U.S. Geological Survey called the initial temblor a 5.8 magnitude earthquake. It said its depth was 10 kilometers (6.2 miles).