STORM2K

Wed May 21, 2003 05:53 PM ET

ALGIERS (Reuters) - A powerful earthquake that struck north Algeria on Wednesday has killed at least 95 people and injured at least 342, state radio said.

Five deaths had been reported in the capital Algiers but hardest hit was Rouiba to the east, where 40 people have been reported dead and 300 injured so far, it said.

The quake measured 6.7 on the Richter scale, U.S. experts said.

Hope the aftershocks will be minimal and that no one will die of their injuries.

rating places the shock in the same general category as the 1994 NorthRidge Earthquake-since construction practices in Algeria are nowhere near the standards in CA, that death toll is likely to go up.

Steve

There have been 200 aftershocks, three were immediately following the initial earthquake.