Kathmandu, A new 7.3-magnitude earthquake and
several powerful aftershocks shook Nepal today killing more than 60 people and
triggering panic in the Himalayan nation already devastated by a massive
temblor less than three weeks back that had claimed over 8,000 lives.
Nepal’s Home Ministry while claiming
that 1,117 people have been injured in the latest quake that hit hardest
in remote mountain districts northeast of the country’s capital Kathmandu.
The earthquake struck at 12:35 PM,
some 83 km east of Kathmandu near Mount Everest at a shallow depth of 15 km,
the US Geological Survey(USGS) said.
The agency had earlier measured the
quake at 7.4 on the Richter Scale but later revised the intensity to 7.3.
A second tremor of 6.3-magnitude
struck about 30 minutes after the 7.3-magnitude quake that sent terrifed
residents running into the streets of the traumatised capital.
The USGS said there were five more
aftershocks measuring over 5 on the Richter Scale after the second tremor that
kept people on the edge.
Police said half-a-dozen buildings
were destroyed in Kathmandu.
The fresh quake triggered massive panic
among the people, who have been staying in the open since the 7.9-magnitude
temblor struck on April 25, killing over 8,000 people and flattening thousands
of buildings besides destroying whole villages.
“All available helicopters along with
Medical Team; SSR Team going to be mobilised to Dolakha and Sindhupalchowk
soon,” said Nepal’s National Emergency Operation Centre.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) has
stationed eight helicopters in Nepal and one of them conducted an aerial survey
soon after today’s quake.
Nepal’s only international airport,
the Tribhuvan International Airport, was briefly closed by authorities and
flights to Kathmandu were diverted.
Authorities have also ordered all
schools to be closed for the next two weeks. Strong tremors were felt in
Kathmandu where people ran out of their houses in panic and some even started
crying.
Authorities appealed to people to stay
in open field.
The temblor triggered landslides and
toppled buildings in Nepal that recently witnessed its worst quake in over 80
years and over 160 aftershocks. At the main hospital in Kathmandu,
patients hurt in last month’s quake were brought out in wheelchairs to avoid
further injury.
Today’s quake had its impact in
several cities in Bihar, West Bengal and UP and tremors were felt across vast
stretches of east and northeast India, where the death toll has reached 17 so
far.
The tremors were also felt in China,
where one woman was killed in Tibet.
Earlier:
A major earthquake on Tuesday jolted
Nepal, striking fear among the people and causing panic in a country which was
barely recovering from the devastating April 25 temblor.
Here are Live
updates:
Over 42
killed in Nepal quake
Death toll in earthquake in Nepal has
risen to 42 and over 1000 have been injured, according to Nepal’s home
ministry.
Over 40 people were killed and
thousands were injured when a big earthquake struck Nepal on Tuesday.
Initial reports said that
26 people were killed in Dolakha district, located about 170 km from here.
Dolakha is about 130 km from Kodari,
the epicentre of the 7.3 magnitude earthquake that struck in the afternoon.
Two five-storeyed buildings collapsed
in capital Kathmandu, an official said.
Police spokesman Kamal Singh Bam
earlier said that four people were killed in Chautara town in Sindhupalchowk
district and three people died in capital Kathmandu.
He said that the number of deaths is
likely to go up as they await news from other areas.
Kathmandu
airport re-opens
The airport here re-opened after a
shutdown following a massive earthquake that shook Nepal.
Two international flights took off
from the Kathmandu airport around 2.30 p.m.
One flight — TG 320 — of the Thai
Airways took off from Kathmandu and was headed to Bangkok. An Indigo flight —
6E 32 — flew out of Kathmandu for Delhi.
Flights moving to Kathmandu were
diverted when the airport was shut down.
Seven killed,
150 injured in Nepal quake: Police
At least seven people were killed and
over 150 were injured when a massive earthquake struck Nepal on Tuesday, police
said.
Police spokesman Kamal Singh Bam said
that four people were killed in Chautara town in Sindhupalchowk district and
three people died in capital Kathmandu.
He said that the number of deaths is
likely to go up as they await news from other areas.
He added that dozens of buildings have
collapsed.
Four killed
in Chautara
According to aid agencies, at least
four persons were killed and 12 others injured in Sindhupalchowk and
several buildings collapsed in today’s quake.
India ready
to provide support to Nepal: Rajnath
Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday
said India would provide all the support required to Nepal, which was once
again jolted by a major earthquake.
“India is ready to provide all the
support which Nepal would require,” the minister told reporters.
Dozens of
cracked buildings collapse
Dozens of buildings which had
developed cracks in the April 25 temblor collapsed on Tuesday when another
major earthquake shook the country.
An eyewitness said that he saw a
building collapse here. Another said that he saw debris falling on a taxi
packed with people.
Dust rose as the buildings began to
collapse following the 7.3 magnitude earthquake, which struck at 12.40 p.m. Its
epicentre was at Kodari and quite close to Mount Everest. Kodari is about 100
km northeast of Kathmandu.
Onlookers were left dazed and
distraught on seeing the buildings collapse with a roar, a replay of the April
25 quake horror.
Strong
aftershocks shake Nepal
Two strong aftershocks shook Nepal on
Tuesday. The USGS said that the earthquake measured 7.3 on the Richter
scale and its epicentre was Kodari, northeast of capital Kathmandu. It had
initially said that the quake measured 7.4 on the Richter scale and its
epicentre was in Zham in China.
The epicentre was quite close to Mount
Everest, the world’s highest peak at 8,848 m.
Two aftershocks followed in quick
succession after the main earthquake which struck at 12.40 (Nepal time).
The first aftershock measured 5.6 on
the Richter scale and its epicentre was 25 km southeast of Kodari, Nepal. The
second aftershock was considerably stronger and it measured 6.3 on the Richter
scale. Its epicentre was 33 km from Ramechhap, Nepal.
Major
earthquake jolts Nepal
The quake measuring 7.3 on richter
scale struck at 12:35 PM, some 70 kilometres east of Kathmandu at a depth of
18.5 kilometres, Indian Meteorological Department said, adding three
aftershocks of 6.2, 5.4 and 4.8 followed the quake.
People in the capital Kathmandu ran
out of their houses. On April 25, a 7.9-magnitude temblor
hit Nepal, killing over 8,000 people and robbing the country of its
architectural heritage.(Source- www.newsroompost.com)
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