Moderate earthquake rattles southern Iran

KAZERUN, IRAN (BNO NEWS) -- A moderate earthquake rattled southern Iran on late Friday, seismologists said. It was not immediately clear if there was any damage or if there were any casualties.

The 5.1-magnitude earthquake at 10.19 p.m. local time (18.49 UTC) was centered about 45 kilometers (25 miles) south-southwest of Kazerun, a city in Iran's Fars province, according to the Iranian Seismological Center. It struck about 13.7 kilometers (8.5 miles) deep, making it a shallow earthquake.

It was not immediately clear if there was any damage or if there were any casualties from the earthquake.

Small and moderate earthquakes sometimes cause heavy damage in certain parts of the country due to poor construction. In November 2009, a small 4.9-magnitude earthquake struck the southern Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas, injuring more than 700 people.

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