Strong earthquake jolts northeastern Algeria, killing two

ALGIERS, Algeria - A strong earthquake shook a rural area in northeastern Algeria, killing two people, injuring 12 and damaging houses, civil defense authorities said Saturday.

The quake, which struck Friday morning with a magnitude of 5.4, killed two women, ages 53 and 80, in their homes in the towns of Bougaa and Chemini, civil defense said in a statement. It struck an agricultural region known for its fig and olive crops about 185 miles east of the capital.

Twelve slightly injured people were taken to local hospitals and eight others were treated for shock, the statement said.

In the village of Aguemoun, six houses collapsed, and a three-story villa crumbled in the town of Beni Ourthilane, the epicenter of the quake. Two aftershocks of magnitude 4.6 followed, the statement said.

A quake of magnitude 5 or more can cause considerable damage if it strikes an urban area.