Islamabad - Severe aftershocks caused panic in Pakistan's south-west where a pre-dawn earthquake killed at least 160 people, media reports said Wednesday.

The strongest aftershock measuring 6.2 on the Richter scale hit the south-western Balochistan province at 5:32 pm (1132 GMT), according to the US Geological Survey.

The epicentre was the same as that of the morning quake, which had a magnitude of 6.4 - some 60 kilometres north-east of the provincial capital Quetta.

In towns in the area, terrified people ran towards open areas, stumbling upon each other and receiving minor injuries, the Urdu-language Geo news channel reported.

The jolts were felt for up to 15 seconds, Aaj TV television said.

More than a dozen aftershocks have been felt in the calamity-hit zone since the morning. (dpa)