It was siesta time in Lar (pop. 15,000), a provincial capital in southern Iran, and most of the city was asleep. Down in the brick-domed bazaar, a few shopkeepers haggled with farmers over fruits and vegetables to be sold later to housewives. About the only other activity was a gathering of girl students at Soraya School to celebrate National Children's Day and render thanks to Allah and the Shah, in roughly equal measure, for the blessings of a secondary education.
Suddenly from deep underneath the jagged Zagros mountain range came a 50-second, stomach-wrenching tremor....
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