Nepal Earthquake: Over 2300 dead, 6.6 million people affected

Kathmandu Another tremblor measuring 69 on the Richter scale shook Nepal on Sunday causing fresh panic as rescuers pulled out bodies from debris a day after a 79 magnitude earthquake left over 2300 dead and forced tens of thousands to spend the night on the streetsThe UN office in Nepal said around 66 million people have been affected in the Himalayan nation The quake sparked an avalanche in the Mount Everest area killing scores of mountaineersNepal Earthquake Fresh tremors rock Delhi northern IndiaTens of thousands fled out of their homes in the Kathmandu Valley and other districts at 1254 pm triggering fresh scare in a country still trying to come to grips with Saturdays extent of devastationPicsAFPThe epicentre of Sundays earthquake was at 17 km south of Kodari about 110 km from here The quake was comparatively shallower at 10 km compared to the Saturday temblor whose epicentre lay at a depth of 15 kmThe second earthquake or major aftershock hit Nepal even as soldiers policemen and other official agencies were out on the streets in full strength throughout the night both in the Kathmandu Valley and other districts as India and other countries rushed immediate helpNepal Earthquake Fresh tremors in UP quake toll climbs to 13A day after a 79magnitude earthquake rattled much of Nepal and even neighbouring India Bhutan and Tibet an official statement put the latest death toll at 1911 people The Saturday quakes epicentre lay in Lamjung district around 75 km northwest of KathmanduThe Nepal home ministry said more than 50 aftershocks were also felt The aftershocks are still continuing said an IANS correspondent in the nations capitalFearing more damage hundreds of rattled residents of Kathmandu slept on the streets Charitable organisations and official agencies provided food and water to the homelessNepal Earthquake The day the Earth shookAt least 723 people perished in Kathmandu alone while 205 others were killed in Bhaktapur just 13 km from the capital and 125 in Lalitpur only five kilometres away a statement from the ministry saidTwo foreigners and two police personnel were among the dead The statement warned that the death toll was likely to riseMore than 4600 people were injured in the disaster and were admitted to various hospitalsThe maximum of 80 deaths were reported from Sindhupalchowk district the Nepalese media reportedThe government has declared a national crisis and established a fund of 500 million Nepali rupees about 4 million for the reconstruction of the damaged infrastructuresWe have launched a massive rescue and rehabilitation action plan and lots needs to be done Information and Broadcasting Minister Minendra Rijal told the media Our country is a moment of crisis and we will require tremendous support and aidThis is the worst earthquake to hit Nepal in more than 80 years The last one in 1934 killed some 8500 peopleSaturdays disaster brought down historical monuments such as Dharhara tower in Kathmandu while Basantapur Durbar Square and Patan Durbar Square were also destroyedThe Kantipur Daily said the shockwaves that followed throughout the day Saturday destroyed around 80 percent of the temples in Basantapur Durbar SquareThese included the Kasthamandap Panchtale temple the ninestorey Basantapur Durbar the Dasa Avtar temple and Krishna Mandir Kasthamandap which inspired the name Kathmandu is a 16th century wooden monumentA few other monuments including the Kumari Temple and the Taleju Bhawani have partially collapsedAlso readDeath and destruction as massive earthquake hits NepalAt Dharahara around two dozen dead bodies were recovered from the towers debris Dharahara had broken into parts in a similar earthquake 83 years agoPrushottam Lochan Shrestha a historian told the Kantipur Daily We have lost most monuments that had been designated as World Heritage Sites in Kathmandu Bhaktapur and Lalitpur They cannot be restored to their original state