A major earthquake and dozens of powerful aftershocks struck Nepal on Saturday, destroying parts of the capital, Kathmandu, and killing at least 1,130 people. The United States and other nations were sending disaster response teams to the region to assist Kathmandu in dealing with the tragedy.
The 7.8-magnitude jolt, the most powerful to hit the area in 81 years, shook Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth, and triggered avalanches that buried mountain climbers in their base camps. A 6.6-magnitude aftershock hit more than an hour after the initial quake.
The trail of death and devastation spread from the Himalayan nation, one of the world’s poorest, to neighboring countries, which also felt tremors from the quake and aftershocks.
At least 34 people were killed in India, mostly in the eastern state of Bihar, from where the worst devastation was reported. Five deaths were reported in Tibet, and casualty reports also came in from Bangladesh, Bhutan and other Nepal-China border areas.
The United States made an initial pledge of $1 million in disaster relief. The White House added that it stood ready to assist the people of Nepal and the region further. The U.S. Agency for International Development activated an urban search-and-rescue team to deploy with its Disaster Assistance Response Team.
A White House official said President Barack Obama had been briefed on the situation, and the State Department announced on Twitter that it was “accounting for U.S. citizens after #NepalEarthquake.”
India also was assisting in the rescue effort. Foreign Secretary Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said three tons of supplies and 40 members of India’s National Disaster Response Force were aboard a C-130 flying to the Kathmandu airport and that two larger C-17 aircraft would follow.
But it was unclear where or how those aircraft might land, because of the Kathmandu airport closure and the loss of all communications networks.
The massive scale of the tragedy unfolded in the hours after the earthquake flattened homes, damaged buildings, and split open walls and roads in the bustling Kathmandu Valley — home to 2-1/2 million people and Nepal’s main cities.
But the devastation could be much wider because scores of tiny villages perched on Himalayan slopes have not yet been accessed, warned Krishna Prasad Dhakal, deputy chief at the Nepal Embassy in New Delhi.
“You know that the effect of this earthquake has been in the remote areas also … so it will take time to get the data. Definitely, it will take few more days to rescue,” said Dhakal.
The epicenter of the killer quake, which struck shortly before noon, was 80 kilometers northwest of Kathmandu. The quake was shallow, which made it more destructive.
The death toll climbed rapidly through the day as the army and police launched a rescue effort.
VOA’s correspondent in southeast Asia, Steve Herman, said there were reports of people trapped in buildings and panicking in the streets. Eyewitnesses told him that newer buildings in Kathmandu were still standing, but that most of the older buildings had apparently collapsed in the center of the city.
Only a stump and a pile of rubble was left of Kathmandu’s 60-meter-tall, iconic 19th-century Dharara tower. Dozens were feared trapped under it. Several other heritage buildings, including ancient temples, were also damaged or destroyed.
The director of the Nepal Tourism Board, Aditya Baral, said the old area of Kathmandu could have suffered the worst damage.
“Old houses in the narrow lanes of the main city core area might have been devastated. There are not proper building structures, designs — they are almost 100 years old. There are small bylanes in between,” said Baral.
Some residents dug through rubble using bare hands, searching for survivors. Hundreds crowded outside hospitals, ferrying the injured and trying to help in other ways. Many people with broken limbs lay on the street, waiting for help. Others spent hours on the roads as aftershocks rumbled through the country, spreading fear.
The earthquake also triggered an avalanche at the Mount Everest Base Camp, killing several guides and mountaineers and flattening many tents. Romanian climber Alex Gavan tweeted, “Running for life from my tent.” Thousands of foreign nationals were reported to be in Nepal for the spring trekking season.
The country’s only international airport was shut down, trapping many tourists from returning to countries like India and China.
VOA’s Steve Herman contributed to this report from Bangkok.
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