Powerful earthquake rocks Nepal......
KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — A powerful, magnitude-7.9 earthquake shook Nepal's capital and the densely populated Kathmandu Valley before noon Saturday, collapsing houses, leveling centuries-old temples and cutting open roads in the worst temblor in the Himalayan nation in over 80 years.Dozens of people with injuries were being brought to the main hospital in central Kathmandu. There was no immediate estimate on fatalities, except for a report by China's state broadcaster that said one Chinese tourist was killed at the Nepal-China border.
The earthquake also shook several cities across northern India, and was felt as far away as Lahore in Pakistan and Lhasa in Tibet, 550 kilometers (340 miles) east of Kathmandu. Aftershocks continued to ripple through the region for hours.
Pushpa Das, a laborer, ran from the house when the first quake struck but could not escape a collapsing wall that injured his arm.
"It was very scary. The earth was moving … I am waiting for treatment but the (hospital) staff is overwhelmed," he said, gingerly holding his right arm with his left hand. As he spoke dozens of more people showed up with injuries, mostly from falling bricks.
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Mohammad Shahab, a resident from Lahore, Pakistan, said he was sitting in his office when the earthquake rocked the city near the border with India.
The sustained quake also was felt in India's capital of New Delhi. AP reporters in Indian cities of Lucknow in the north and Patna in the east also reported strong tremors.
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi called a meeting of top government officials to review the damage and disaster preparedness in parts of India that felt strong tremors. The Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Sikkim, which share a border with Nepal, have reported building damage. There have also been reports of damage in the northeastern state of Assam.
Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif offered "all possible help" that Nepal may need.
Nepal suffered its worst recorded earthquake in 1934, which measured 8.0 and all but destroyed the cities of Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Patan.....news are yet to come....25 APril/2015.....the earth quake...took Place at 11/41 to 12/ 19...
I am watching it on CNN now...
My most sincere symphaty to people in these zone ,,, so scary ,, May HEAVEN lay hands of you ,,,
I'v watched from our TV news, Some parts of China on the border of Napelhas also been affected ,many people got out of their buildings.So horrible...
Al Jazeera is reporting a rising death toll well past the earlier Reuters number. The 9 story tall Dharawa tower had over 200 in it when it collapsed. Most of the area's ancient UNESCO World Heritage buildings took heavy damage or utterly collapsed. I have not found any news reports from the city of Pokahara. Being as far from the epicenter as Kathmandu I fear the situation is very similar, but without communication. There is an airport there, but the runway is small (about 4,000 feet) and serves small propeller type planes.
The US is dispatching a disaster response unit, but of course even in the best of times, getting to Nepal is not easy. Looking at Google maps and airport data I am thinking a leapfrog approach may be needed to get even a small amount of equipment and supplies in. The state of the bridges on the Prithvi highway are not known, and even in the best of times, that is a small land slide prone dangerous road.
As it may be several days before any assistance arrives in some areas I fear many secondary casualties may occur.
As much more detailed than the public news media. It is night now and about 12 Celsius. Most are outside as aftershocks continue.
Aid is enroute from India already. I believe the scale of the devastation is hinted at with China releasing the news at least 12 dead inside China.
For those outside Nepal desiring to reach folks inside, the web page above is reporting that while direct cell phone contact seems to be not achievable, Facebook is still working and many are able to get news in and out by Facebook.