-- According to the reports so far, around 800 have
died in Nepal, around 35 in India, 6 in China and 2 in Bangladesh. More reports
are awaited and figures are bound to go up.
-- While writing this, the magnitude of the earthquake
is found to be around 7.8 by the US Geological Survey. It began with 7.5,
revised its estimates to 7.9 and then came down to 7.8. The origin’s depth was
found to be 15 Kms.
-- According to the local Nepali time, the earthquake
shook the grounds at 11:56 AM (11:41 AM in India - according to India time that is 15 minutes behind Nepal). The second earthquake at
6:45 PM was 6.6 on the Richter-Scale. There were some 16 aftershocks reported
so far.
-- Epicentre of the quake is said to be 34 Kms East
of Lamjung, a Nepali city that is predominantly agricultural in nature.
-- From Kathmandu, the quake epicentre is just
around 77 Kms away, in the North-West direction, according to the estimates of
the US Geological Survey.
-- The main event of the earthquake lasted for
around 30 seconds to 2 minutes at different locations.
-- Tremors were felt in many countries including
India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and China. After Nepal, India is expected to be
badly affected. North India and East India are reporting destruction with quake
being felt as far as Mumbai and in parts of Andhra Pradesh.
-- In Nepal, the death toll is expected to be in
thousands. Earthquake destruction assessment takes time.
-- Nepal is an impoverished country where power and
communication lines are down in the quake aftermath.
-- The death figure available so far is basically from
Kathmandu and other some other cities. Many places are so remote, and with
communication and power lines down, it will take time to assess the damage
there.
-- Kathmandu airport is shut and the flights to it
are diverted to India. The whole city is a scene of destruction with many of
its heritage sites lost in the earthquake.
-- Nepal is in quake fault-line zone, and so are the
quake-affected areas in all other countries in today’s earthquake. While Nepal
is a tourism and agrarian economy, Kathmandu is cosmopolitan in nature and is
densely inhabited. We have preliminary assessment of destruction from Kathmandu
but the overall report will take time.
-- It’s after 80 years that Nepal has faced such a
massive earthquake. An earthquake of magnitude 8.2 had hit Nepal and Bihar in
1934 decimating Kathmandu, other parts of Nepal and parts of Bihar including
Muzaffarpur and Munger.
-- This time also, in India, Bihar is the worst
affected Indian state, though it is expected to be unlike the last time. Many
of its districts have reported quake damage, death toll and the assessment is
on.
-- Tourism is Nepal’s main source of income for a
country of 27.8 million with Mount Everest and Himalayan trekking being the
main sources. Also, many of Nepali temples including those in Kathmandu and
Janakpur are holy places for Hinduism and Hindus flock to visit these temples.
-- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken
with Nepali President and Prime Minister. India is helping in rescue, relief and
reconnaissance. One of the Indian aircrafts with a team of NDRF (National
Disaster Response Force) personnel has landed there. Other Indian teams with
more NDRF personnel and Indian experts are on their way.
-- A quake triggered avalanche has caused widespread
damage to the tourism related to the Himalaya and the Mount Everest. Some 8
Everest climbers have died so far, near the area of the base camp the reports
say. More reports are awaited. And we have not forgotten the avalanche of April
2014 that had killed 16 Sherpas.