World News
Death toll rises as Nepal experiences series of aftershocks─── 11:38 Sun, 26 Apr 2015
Kathmandu – The official death toll from Nepal’s worst earthquake in more than 80 years rose to nearly 2,000 as another major shock sent people back out into the streets in fear Sunday.
The Interior Ministry put the confirmed death toll from Saturday’s 7.8-magnitude tremor at more than 1,900, with more than 1,000 of those reported in the capital Kathmandu.
Officials said the toll was expected to rise as reports have yet to come in from remote districts, where entire villages were said to have been reduced to rubble.
“Every house is a pile of bricks and frames in our village,” a resident from Dharampur, a small town on the outskirts of Kathmandu, said. More than 5,000 people have been reported injured, and that toll was also considered to be low.
Police throughout the country were searching the rubble for survivors.
Buildings and historical monuments had been reduced to rubble, including the ancient centre of the Kathmandu, destroying nearly all major tourist sites in the capital.
“I don’t know how we survived it.”
In some villages, entire families were buried under the rubble of their homes, according to distress call that people sent to local media.
“Help is not arriving. We are here in Sindupalchowk, Bhotang-2. Nine villages without food and homeless,” a woman identifying herself as Puja said.
The government announced 500 million rupees (about 5 million dollars) for disaster relief, as people across the nation waited without food and shelter in open spaces.
Several smaller quakes rocked the country through the weekend, including a major one measuring 6.7-magnitude on Sunday afternoon, according to the US Geological Survey.
People were staying outdoors in groups and feeding on rumours.
Emergency food and other assistance was slow in coming.
“If this keeps happening, we’ll all die. What can we do, but wait for this to pass?” said Muna Lama, holding her 8-month-old baby close to her chest.
“Many among the dead are children,” said Pratap Narayan of the Teaching Hospital, which has 12 campuses spread across the capital and the Kathmandu Valley. “We are flooded with casualties.”
Power supply had been cut indefinitely as the reservoirs feeding hydropower production had been damaged, which also affected water supply. Pubic transportation was mostly stopped.
Officials said at least 18 climbers had died in an avalanche triggered by the earthquake at the Mount Everest Base Camp. Bad weather had hampered rescue mission.
One team of 20 reported that it was stranded at a higher camp, because the route back down across the icefall had been destroyed.
Nepal last witnessed such a major earthquake in 1934, a 8.2 magnitude quake that killed at least 10,000 in Nepal and a further 7,000 in nearby Bihar.
ANA
