Nepal battles aftershocks, rain, medical crisis; over 2,400 dead
Rain and fresh tremors on Sunday night added misery in Nepal hampering rescuers from wading through tonnes of rubble of flattened homes and buildings to look for survivors of the earthquake that has killed over 2,400 people, including five Indians, and left more than 6,000 others injured. A strong 6.7-magnitude aftershock sent people running for open spaces as they struggled with the devastation caused by Saturday’s massive 7.9-magnitude temblor. The latest aftershock hit at a shallow depth of 10 kilometres at 12:39 IST, according to the US Geological Survey. The aftershock was registered 17 kilometres south of Kodari — 114 kilometres north of Nepal’s Capital — near the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. The strong 6.7-magnitude aftershock sent people scrambling for open spaces.
With no electricity, Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, looked a ghost town with rain pounding the city, forcing the closure of the airport where chaotic scenes were witnessed with stranded foreign tourists desperate to go home. “Still raining, adds to the misery. Only consolation is that it may ease the water crisis in some of the shelters,” Nepali Times Editor Kunda Dixit tweeted.
He said Nepal urgently needs tents and medicines. Earlier, fresh powerful aftershocks on Sunday triggered panic among the stricken people and caused avalanches on Mt Everest which had Saturday taken a toll of 22 lives. The 7.9-magnitude temblor on Saturday left a trail of devastation and suffering, with people spending the cold night in the open because of fears of fresh quake.
According to the latest figures available with the Kathmandu-based National Emergency Operation Centre, the death toll in Nepal stood at 2,430 with over 6,000 people injured. 1,053 people are reported killed in the Kathmandu Valley alone. Officials fear the death toll could rise as desperate search for survivors continued. Mass cremations were held here as the death toll continued to climb throughout the day. Five Indians, including the daughter of an Indian embassy employee, were among those killed in the quake.