Two light quakes jolt Bangladesh

DHAKA, Sept 11 AFP - Two light earthquakes jolted Bangladesh, the country's weather office said Saturday, but there were no reports of any major damage or casualties.The two quakes shook Bangladesh late Friday. One, which hit at 10:45 pm (1645 GMT), had a magnitude of 4 while the other which struck at 11:24 pm (1724 GMT) was measured at 4.6, the government's meteorological department said.

The epicentre of both quakes was located 71 kilometres (40 miles) southwest of the capital Dhaka, meteorological department official Kamrul Ahsan said."There were at least two tremors but we have no reports of damage or any casualties," he told AFP, adding each quake lasted a few seconds.The US Geological Survey said the quakes occurred at a depth of 14 kilometers.

The tremors caused multi-storey buildings across Dhaka to shake for a few seconds, panicking many residents who briefly fled their homes ahead of Saturday's Eid al-Fitr celebrations.No further shocks were reported Saturday, Ahsan said.Earthquake expert Maksud Kamal said the tremors occurred on the Dhaleshwari fault line and added that the mild tremors could herald a larger earthquake, according to local media.