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Nepal earthquake: rescue continues as death toll exceeds 2,500 – the day's updates

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Rolling coverage of developments in Himalayan nation after 7.8 magnitude quake near Kathmandu

 Updated 
Sun 26 Apr 2015 12.18 EDTFirst published on Sat 25 Apr 2015 20.44 EDT
A Buddha statue is surrounded by debris from a collapsed temple in the UNESCO world heritage site of Bhaktapur on April 26, 2015 in Bhaktapur, Nepal.
A Buddha statue is surrounded by debris from a collapsed temple in the UNESCO world heritage site of Bhaktapur on April 26, 2015 in Bhaktapur, Nepal. Photograph: Omar Havana/Getty Images
A Buddha statue is surrounded by debris from a collapsed temple in the UNESCO world heritage site of Bhaktapur on April 26, 2015 in Bhaktapur, Nepal. Photograph: Omar Havana/Getty Images

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The official number of dead from Saturday’s Himalayan earthquake has topped 2,500 and may continue to rise as remote areas near the epicenter are searched, according to the Associated Press.

Nepal authorities said Sunday that at least 2,430 people in that country had died in Nepal alone, not including the 18 people that the Nepal Mountaineering Association says died in an earthquake-triggered avalanche on Mount Everest. Another 61 people died from the quake in India and a few in other neighboring countries.

With search and rescue efforts far from over, it was unclear how much the death toll would rise.

Some shocking CCTV footage, which shows the moment aftershocks hit in Tibet after Nepal earthquake.

Surveillance footage of several aftershocks in Tibet on the same day Nepal was hit by a devastating magnitude 7.9 earthquake. The footage, shot on Saturday, shows roads and buildings shaking violently in Gyirong county, which neighbours Nepal. More than 2000 people were killed in Saturday’s quake in Nepal, and another 5000 injured Guardian

Devastating Nepal quake kills over 1,000 http://t.co/6RXvxUJppB (Photo: Reuters) pic.twitter.com/Qz3yl9zNiy

— ABS-CBN News (@ABSCBNNews) April 25, 2015

Reuters have this report on how doctors are having to operate on injured victims of the quake in the streets because of fear of reentering unsafe buildings:

Overwhelmed doctors moved hundreds of patients onto the streets of Nepal’s capital on Sunday when aftershocks rattled hospitals and buildings already damaged by an earthquake that killed more than 2,400 people and devastated Kathmandu valley.

Sick and wounded people lay on a dusty road outside Kathmandu Medical College while hospital workers carried more patients out of the building on stretchers and sacks.

Doctors set up an operating theatre inside a tent and rushed in the most critical, following a particularly big tremor that sent people running terrified into the streets.

The aftershock, itself a strong 6.7 magnitude quake, triggered more avalanches in the Himalayas after Saturday’s 7.9 quake - which unleashed Everest’s worst disaster and was the strongest since 1934 when 8,500 people were killed.

Outside the National Trauma Centre in Kathmandu, patients in wheelchairs who had been under treatment before the earthquake hit joined hundreds of injured with fractured and bloody limbs, who lay inside tents made from hospital sheets.

“We only have one operation theatre here. To be able to provide immediate treatment we require 15 theatres. I am just not able to cope,” said Dipendra Pandey, an orthopaedic surgeon, adding he had done 36 critical operations since Saturday.

Relief agencies and officials said most hospitals were overflowing and short on medical supplies.

“Both private and government hospitals have run out of space and are treating patients outside, in the open,” said Nepal’s envoy to India, Deep Kumar Upadhyay.

Neighbouring countries sent in military transport planes laden with medical supplies, food and water. But little sign of organised relief efforts was visible as aid agencies struggled to fly helicopters in cloudy weather, aftershocks forced the intermittent closure of Kathmandu airport and roads were blocked by landslides.

The extent of the damage around the epicentre, near Gorkha in the western highlands, had still not been fully assessed.

Patchy mobile telephone and email communication added to the slow progress of relief as Asia’s poorest country reeled from its worst earthquake in eight decades.

As rescuers dug with their hands through the rubble of brick buildings in crowded Kathmandu, thousands of survivors prepared to spend a second rainy night outside because they were afraid of going back to damaged homes.

Dfid have issued a new press release with details of the aid that will be given to Nepal to help the rescue operation.

The Department for International Development has activated its rapid funding mechanism for charities and partners on the ground dealing with the aftermath of the Nepal earthquake, International Development Secretary Justine Greening announced today.

This is part of a new £5 million package of UK support in response to the Nepal earthquake which includes:

•£3 million released under the Rapid Response Facility (RRF) so partners can address immediate needs on the ground; and

•£2 million for the British Red Cross.

UK Government officials in Kathmandu and London are providing consular assistance to British nationals who have been caught up in this disaster and the Foreign Office has opened a crisis hotline for those concerned about friends or family. Britain is also sending Rapid Deployment Teams to provide assistance to British nationals.

Justine Greening said:

“As the death toll rises and the scale of this devastating earthquake becomes evident, the UK is continuing to do everything it can to help all those affected by this tragedy.

“I have now activated the Rapid Response Facility. This means we can fast track funding to aid workers on the ground so they can provide desperately needed supplies including clean water, shelter, household items and blankets. We are also sending humanitarian experts from the UK to provide urgent support on the ground.

“Meanwhile UK Government officials in Kathmandu and London continue to provide assistance to British nationals who have been caught up in this disaster. We will continue to do everything we can to help all those affected.”

My colleague Jason Burke has been tweeting from the scene at Kathmandu

Power out in much of #kathmandu but most people cheerful, scared and cooking dinner in gardens, streets, anywhere but inside. #quake

— Jason Burke (@burke_jason) April 26, 2015

Saddest story of day: three girls playing cricket outside home. Buried in seconds, mother too. Dad survived no one knows whereabouts. #quake

— Jason Burke (@burke_jason) April 26, 2015

He’s been speaking to officials in the Ghorka district, close to the epicentre, who say at the moment they only have two helicopters out for rescue operations.

Officials in ghorka district close to epicentre tell me half houses destroyed. Have got two helicopters up for rescue. That's all.

— Jason Burke (@burke_jason) April 26, 2015

UK announce £5m funding for Nepal relief effort

International Development Secretary Justine #Greening announces £5m in UK funding to contribute towards relief effort #NepalEarthquake

— Sky News Newsdesk (@SkyNewsBreak) April 26, 2015

Justine #Greening says the UK has deployed a team of humanitarian experts to #Nepal to provide support for those affected by the #earthquake

— Sky News Newsdesk (@SkyNewsBreak) April 25, 2015

NEWS: UK sends humanitarian support for those affected by #Nepal earthquake http://t.co/zdS4F6UxGM

— DFID (@DFID_UK) April 25, 2015

Dfid news release on humanitarian support:

The UK has deployed a team of humanitarian experts to Nepal to provide urgent humanitarian support for people affected by the earthquake, International Development Secretary Justine Greening announced today.

The eight-strong team of disaster response specialists, which includes experts in search and rescue, will travel to Nepal overnight tonight and begin work tomorrow assessing the scale of the damage and helping the Nepalese authorities direct the humanitarian response.

Justine Greening said:

My thoughts are with the people of Nepal, in particular all those who have lost loved ones. The absolute priority must be to reach people who are trapped and injured, and provide shelter and protection to those who have lost their homes.

Nepal needs our urgent humanitarian assistance. That is why we have rapidly deployed a team of humanitarian experts who will immediately begin work assessing the damage and helping the Nepalese authorities respond to this devastating earthquake.

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Reader Thirdness, whose daughter is in Lhasa, has asked if there is any information from Tibet.

This report from DNAIndia gives a few details, but not much.

Death toll in southwest China’s Tibet Autonomous Region has risen to 17 in the wake of the devastating earthquake that hit neighbouring Nepal on Saturday, while the Communist giant on Sunday dispatched a 62-member search and rescue team to help the Himalayan nation.

Nearly 1,500 people, including two Indians, have died in Nepal and hundreds are feared missing, after a 7.9-magnitude earthquake tore through that country flattening houses and buildings including the iconic Dharhara tower and landmark Darbar Square in the heart of its capital. The death toll in Tibet has climbed to 17 after the powerful earthquake struck neighbouring Nepal, local authorities said today.

Meanwhile a 62-member search and rescue team has left for Nepal to carry out humanitarian rescue there. With six sniffer dogs and relevant rescue and medical equipment, the team is expected to arrive in Kathmandu midday today on a chartered plane, the China Earthquake Administration said. Of the rescuers, 40 are from the 38th Group Army of the People’s Liberation Army, Beijing Military Area Command.

Twenty percent of the experienced rescuers have participated in international rescue missions.

Chinese President Xi Jinping yesterday sent a message of condolence to Nepalese President Ram Baran Yadav over the disastrous earthquake, worse in over 80 years of Nepal’s recorded history. On behalf of the Chinese government and people, as well as in his own name, Xi offered his deep condolences to the victims in the earthquake, and offered sincere sympathies to those injured as well as to the families of the victims.

In his message, the Chinese president also expressed his confidence in the Nepalese government, under the leadership of Yadav, to combat the disaster and China’s willingness to provide all necessary assistance. In Tibet the quake also damaged buildings and roads and cut off telecommunications in the two counties and several neighbouring regions. So far, roads leading to the two counties have been cleared, but rescue efforts are hampered by heavy snow in the area.

The temblor damaged several temples in Tibet’s border area, but no casualties have been reported from there so far. Chen Quanguo, Communist Party of China chief of Tibet, has ordered to evacuate people in the quake-hit regions to avoid further deaths and injuries from aftershocks and secondary disasters. About 600 border guards are currently involved in the rescue operation in Nyalam and Gyirong.

A total of 3,204 firefighters and 87 sniffer dogs from Tibet and neighbouring provinces have also been readied to go to the quake-struck areas as a reinforcement. The authorities are sending tents, quilts, clothes, medicine and bottled water to the regions.

This from reader Shashank Suman BTL about the Indian government’s efforts to help the rescue operation:

As part of the nation’s overall relief effort for Nepal, the Indian Army has launched Operation Maitri.

A Multi National Coordination Centre has been set up. In addition, in PPO Pokhra, Head quarters are being established for relief operations.

The following resources have been allocated so far as part of Operation Maitri, in support of the Nepalese Army’s relief effort:-

(a) 18 Medical Teams earmarked. Six Medical Teams have reached and have been deployed while the rest are on standby.

(b) 10 Engineer Task Forces(ETFs) consisting of manpower, skid steers and JCBs (One partial ETF has landed with stores. Balance are on standby in India).

(c) 10,000 blankets and 1,000 tents are on standby.

(d) 10 INMARSATs for satellite communications have reached Nepal.

Aviation assets of five ALH helicopters and two Cheetah helicopters have been staged forward to Gorakhpur.

“Further, taking cognizance of the request of the Nepalese Government for Oxygen on account of problems in the Kathmandu Oxygen plant, additional cylinders are being dispatched (300 located at Bengdubi for dispatch to Nepal),” read a statement.

Indian Army Everest Expedition was training at Base Camp when the Earth Quake struck. Their equipment was buried in the avalanche, however the team is safe and helped in recovery of dead bodies of other foreign climbers.

“19 dead bodies and 61 injured persons were rescued by the Indian Army Expedition Team,” read the statement

The Medical Officer has treated a number of injured international mountaineers.

New footage from Kathmandu shows the aftermath of Saturday’s magnitude 7.9 earthquake with houses toppled and multi-storey apartments reduced to rubble.

New footage from the day after a 7.9 earthquake hit Nepal shows the extent of the damage caused, and the situation facing survivors. Guardian
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