A shallow and forceful magnitude-5.7 earthquake slammed into northeastern Bangladesh in the early hours of Friday, unleashing waves of terror that sent millions scrambling from their beds as the ground heaved and structures groaned under the assault. Centered just 12 kilometers northeast of Sylhet city in the Surma Basin at a perilously low depth of 18 kilometers, the quake struck at 4:27 a.m. local time, persisting for a gut-wrenching 45 seconds and registering as the most intense seismic event in the country since the 2016 Manipur border tremor.