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Chechnya earthquake toll rises to 13

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At least 13 people, including three children, have now died following an earthquake on Saturday in Chechnya, near the war-torn capital city of Grozny, the Agence France-Presse is reporting. More than 100 were left injured.

The quake measured 6.3 on the Richter scale, and caused major damage to the country's infrastructure. It was centered some 25 miles (40 kilometers) east of Grozny. Citizens were scheduled to vote today (Sunday) in regional elections, so many were in temporary housing when the quake struck at about noon local time.

For more on earthquakes, including what makes them stop and why aftershocks may not be aftershocks after all, see our in-depth report.

Ivan Oransky is editor in chief of Spectrum and a distinguished writer in residence at New York University's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute. He is a co-founder of Retraction Watch and a volunteer member of the board of directors of the PubPeer Foundation.

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