According to the US Geological Survey the epicentre of the quake was 86km southeast of Khash, Iran.

Initial reports put the death toll at 40, with officials saying that hundreds are feared dead from the quake.

“It was the biggest earthquake in Iran in 40 years and we are expecting hundreds of dead,” the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Reuters.

The Geophysics Institute of Tehran University registered the quake at 15:14 hours local time.

The quake lasted for 40 seconds. The area has already been hit by several aftershocks, including the last one which measured 4.4 on the Richter scale, Fars news agency reported.

According to reports the earthquake was felt in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Afghanistan including Delhi, India’s capital.

A powerful 6.3 magnitude quake struck close to Iran’s only nuclear power station on April 9, killing 39 people and injuring 850 as it destroyed houses and two villages.

  Most of Iran’s nuclear-related facilities are located in central Iran or its west, including the Bushehr nuclear power plant on the Gulf coast.  

The nearby Bushehr nuclear plant remained undamaged.

The deadliest quake in the country was in June 1990 and measured 7.7 on the Richter scale. About 37,000 people were killed and more than 100,000 injured in the northwestern provinces of Gilan and Zanjan. It devastated 27 towns and about 1,870 villages, according to Fars news agency.