On April 25, 2015, an earthquake measuring 7.9 on the Richter scale hit Nepal. The epicentre of the quake was in Lamjung, 50 miles (80km) north-west of Kathmandu. Both Kathmandu and Pokhara were very badly affected, with the strong earthquake being felt as far away as Pakistan, Bangladesh, Delhi (India) and Shigatse (Tibetan Autonomous Region, China). This was the worst tremor in the Himalayan region in over 80 years. At the time of writing, 1,400 people are confirmed to be dead, with at least 1,700 people injured. Thousands more remain homeless due to countless buildings having collapsed or being in danger of collapsing. Older cities, for example Bhaktapur, are very badly affected because many of the buildings which were ancient traditional architecture have been reduced to rubble. Even the famous Boudhanath Stupa has a huge crack at the top.
The earthquake also triggered a deadly avalanche on Mount Everest and 18 people are confirmed to be dead. Part of the base camp at Everest where mountaineers stay to acclimatise to the altitude, is now partially buried and it is reported that at least 1,000 climbers were in base camp or on the mountain at the time of the earthquake. Many are leaving the mountain now, to seek safer shelter elsewhere.
The Nepali government has declared a state of emergency and along with many NGOs, they have sent out appeals to the international community for assistance. Some governments have responded to their request, for example Indian prime minister Narendra Modi who ordered an immediate dispatch of relief and medical teams to Nepal, and the evacuation of Indian tourists. The Chinese government have also prepared their emergency relief team to go to Nepal to help.
The authorities in Nepal are working hard to organise rescue efforts for their people but it is difficult. Not only is the country poor, but the authorities do not have earthquake preparedness training and equipment to deal with such a huge disaster.
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