Earthquake strikes South Africa, one dead

JOHANNESBURG: A 5.3 magnitude earthquake struck South Africa today, shaking buildings in the commercial capital Johannesburg and killing one man in a gold mining town as well as injuring several mineworkers.
The quake, centred south of Johannesburg, was reportedly felt as far afield as neighbouring Botswana and Mozambique.
At least one person was killed when a building collapsed in the town Orkney in the heart of a gold mining belt, according to emergency services agency ER24.
"One man was killed when a wall collapsed at a house in the Orkney area," ER24 spokesman Werner Vermaak told AFP.
ER24 said workers at a gold mine in Orkney had been evacuated.
Mining firm AngloGold Ashanti said 17 miners "sustained minor injuries" and received medical attention on site at two mines near the town.
Labour group the National Union of Mineworkers said it had received no reports of miners trapped underground.
The quake was centred 180km south of Johannesburg, at 1022 GMT (6.22pm Malaysia), the United States Geological Survey said.
It was around 6km east of Orkney, a gold mining town.
Two months ago the same gold mining area was hit by a 4.9 tremor.
The last major quake to hit South Africa was in 1969 in the Western Cape province and had a magnitude of 6.3. – AFP