Death Toll In Nepal Earthquake Hits 1000

A POWERFUL earthquake struck Nepal, weekend, killing at least 1000 people across a swath of four countries.

The tragic incident, which collapsed houses, leveled centuries-old temples and triggered avalanches on Mt. Everest, was described as the worst tremor to hit the poor South Asian nation in over 80 years.

Reports indicate that another 20 people were killed in India, six in Tibet and two in Bangladesh, while two Chinese citizens also died at the Nepal-China border as a result of the disaster.

According to the country’s Deputy Inspector General of Police, Komal Singh Bam, the death toll is almost certain to rise.

As a result of the quake, Kathmandu’s international airport was shut down. The quake, with a preliminary magnitude of 7.8, began to rumble across the densely populated Kathmandu Valley a few minutes before Friday, rippling through the capital Kathmandu and spreading in all directions – north toward the Himalayas and Tibet, south to the Indo-Gangetic plains, east toward the Brahmaputra delta of Bangladesh, and west toward the historical city of Lahore in Pakistan.

A magnitude -6.6 aftershock hit about an hour later, and smaller aftershocks continued to jolt the region for hours.

Residents ran out of homes and buildings in panic. Walls tumbled, trees swayed, power lines came crashing down and large cracks opened up on streets and walls. And clouds of dust began to swirl all around.

“Our village has been almost wiped out. Most of the houses are either buried by landslide or damaged by shaking,” said Vim Tamang, a resident of Manglung village near the epicenter.

Tamang, who spoke on telephone, hinted that half of the village folks are either missing or dead. “All the villagers have gathered in the open area. We don’t know what to do. We are feeling helpless.”