239 wounded in NW Iran's 5.6-magnitude quake

TEHRAN - The number of the injured people in the 5.6-magnitude earthquake that rocked northwestern Iran on Friday morning reached 239, the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA) reported on Saturday.

The quake, which occurred near Khoy County in the province of West Azarbaijan at 6:46 am local time (0316 GMT), has a depth of 8 km, according to the Iranian Seismological Center (IRSC).

Of the injured people, 50 were from Khoy County and the rest were from Salmas County, Sadeq Mahmoudi, head of Iran's Relief and Rescue Organization, was quoted by ISNA as saying.

He added that 219 people have been released from medical centers after receiving treatment, while 20 people, including seven from Khoy and 13 from Salmas, have been hospitalized.

Mahmoudi added tents and blankets have been sent out to residents in the quake-affected areas.

On Friday, Director General of West Azarbaijan's Housing Foundation Jafar Barzegar told Iran's official news agency IRNA that 80 residential units in 10 villages in counties of Salmas and Khoy were damaged in the earthquake.

In late January, a 5.9-magnitude earthquake in Khoy County killed three people and injured more than 800.