Summary
- More than 1,000 people have been reported dead after a huge 7.9 magnitude earthquake hit Nepal
- The country’s deputy prime minister, Bamdev Gautam, has declared a state of emergency and appealed for humanitarian assistance across the region.
- 18 climbers were found dead on Mount Everest after the tremor triggered an avalanche. Many more are trapped.
- The total death toll has risen quickly throughout the day, and is now thought to include at least 634 in the Kathmandu Valley and 300 more in the capital.
- 36 people have also been reported dead India, 12 in China, four in Bangladesh and six in Tibet.
- The quake caused dozens of buildings in Kathmandu to collapse, including the historic Dharahara Tower.
- The city’s main hospital is overwhelmed by casualties and residents are facing a night on the streets with nowhere to go.
- Indian prime minister Narendra Modi has ordered an immediate dispatch of relief and medical teams to Nepal, and the evacuation of Indian tourists.
- UK foreign secretary Philip Hammond said the government was in close contact with Nepal, and the British Embassy is offering assistance to the authorities and British Nationals in the country.
Updated
The total death toll from the earthquake has risen again, to 1,130.
A Nepali police spokesman said the latest figure included at least 634 people in the Kathmandu Valley and at least 300 more in the capital.
Updated
More from Anna Codrea-Rado in Nepal:
In an open space, people have taken refuge where a yoga retreat was supposed to be happening. The space had been set up with ground coverings and awnings for the yoga retreat, which turned into a makeshift shelter for the victims.
Three children were huddled under a blanket on the green ground covering. Ragan Karki, 16, said he and his siblings had come to seek shelter for the night and they were waiting for their parents to join them.
The Karki siblings had been in their third floor apartment across the road from the park the quake began. “I stayed inside and hid under the table and then came outside. No one in my family was injured,” Karki said.
His 12-year-old brother Ryan said: “I was scared, but I didn’t cry.”
Two women with a seven-year-old girl said they planned to spend the night outdoors because they felt safer than being in their house. The airport in Kathmandu was closed for most of the afternoon but reportedly reopened at about 7pm local time, but flights in and out of the country were still suspended.
Updated
The Guardian’s Anna Codrea-Rado has been talking to doctors and victims in Kathamndu’s main hospital. She sent this moving account:
Victims [in Kathmandu] were taken to the nearby Bir Emergency Hospital, where doctors battled to save lives and treat the wounded.
Gajendra Mani Shah, a doctor, told the Guardian that the hospital was dealing mainly with head traumas and limb injuries from falling rubble. He estimated that the hospital had treated about 400 patients.
Shah was treating two Indian tourists with head injuries and said the hospital authorities were trying to get hold of the Indian embassy to inform them of the patients’ situation.
Victims were lying in rows on mattresses, surrounded by blood-soaked tissues and overflowing bedpans. Patients also lined the corridors, hooked up to IVs hanging off metal railings behind them.
One family were sat with their 20-year-old relative, Kanchan Sunwar, who had collapsed when the earthquake struck. She had been with friends in the main square when they saw the buildings sway and start to fall.
Her friends said she fainted and had been in and out of conscious since she was brought to the hospital. “She’s in shock,” her family said.
The hospital was working over capacity into the evening, with doctors being called in from leave.
One doctor, Erabesh Gyawali was not meant to be on shift on Saturday, but he came into work after the first tremor hit. He was with his wife riding their scooter when the quake happened. They were thrown off the bike and narrowly missed being hit by falling rubble from a building.
Updated
The foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, has issued a statement in response to the earthquake in Nepal:
My thoughts are with the people of Nepal and everyone affected by the terrible loss of life and widespread damage caused by the earthquake.
We are in close contact with the Nepalese government. The British Embassy in Nepal is offering our assistance to the authorities and is providing consular assistance to British Nationals.
It’s evening in Nepal now, so rescue workers are trying to get to the most vulnerable people who now have nowhere to sleep for the night. Weather forecasts say temperatures will dip to 12°C (54°F) overnight in Kathmandu, though obviously it is likely to be a far colder at higher altitudes.
Experts say that the death toll is likely to rise substantially in the coming days, partly because of the poor communication and access to some of the regions more remote areas.
BBC is now putting the death toll at 970, with 539 of the victims in the Kathmandu Valley.
18 people found dead on Mount Everest
An Indian army mountaineering team has found 18 bodies on Mount Everest, an army spokesman has said.
Gyanendra Shrestha of the country’s tourism ministry told Reuters that the death toll could rise. He confirmed that the avalanche had buried part of the base camp and two tents had been filled with casualties.
Ministry officials estimated that at least 1,000 climbers, including about 400 foreigners, had been at base camp or on Everest when the earthquake struck.
Updated
Tanya Barron, Plan International’s UK chief executive, is in Biratnagar in Nepal. She has described her experience in the earthquake:
We are 500km from the epicentre in Biratnagar but we still felt the earthquake strongly. We were in a three story building on the roof deck and the building shook violently for around two minutes. A bit stronger and it would have collapsed. People were screaming and running out of their houses, dogs were barking like mad. We took shelter under door lintels and once the movement stopped we ran downstairs, which is when the aftershock started .
Ishwar Rauniyar has spoken to Subarna Khadka, a resident in Kathmandu, who says he was bathing when the first tremor happened.
I tried to come out hurriedly when i experienced the shake, but couldn’t come outside as the door was jammed. I almost lost my hope of life, as I was trapped in the bathroom. But my wife rescued me once the shaking got quiet. I could only pray to god for life.
The children’s charity Plan International has estimated that more than half of the houses in in Bhaktapur, Nepal, have been destroyed. It said this estimate was based on eyewitness reports from staff who are in the area.
Updated
The AP has this on the situation on Mount Everest:
Carsten Lillelund Pedersen, a Dane who is climbing the Everest with a Belgian climber Jelle Veyt, said on his Facebook page that they were at Khumbu Icefall , a rugged area of collapsed ice and snow close to base camp at altitude 5,000 meters (16,500 feet) when the earthquake hit.
He wrote on his Facebook that they have started to receive the injured, including one person with the most severe injuries who sustained many fractures.
“He was blown away by the avalanche and broke both legs. For the camps closer to where the avalanche hit, our Sherpas believe that a lot of people may have been buried in their tents,” he wrote in English. “There is now a steady flow of people fleeing basecamp in hope of more security further down the mountain.”
Here’s an update from Pete Pattisson, who is in Nepal:
Thousands of people in Kathmandu are bedding down outside tonight for fear of further aftershocks from the massive earthquake which struck Nepal this morning.
In the old city of Patan, which adjoins southern Kathmandu, local residents walk through the narrow streets clutching blankets, to gather in open areas and temple grounds.
“Everyone is scared of a repeat,” said Rabin Shakya, 29. “I rushed outside when I felt the earthquake. I was terrified. I’ve stayed outside all day.”
Shakya will spend the night in a local plant nursery alongside about 200 other residents of Tapahita Nyadhal.
Another local settling down for the night outdoors is 70 year old Laxmi Bhatacharja. “When the earthquake happened I ran outside without my shoes. My heart was racing. I’m staying here outside. I’m too afraid to go back indoors.”
In the neighbouring community of Nyakha Chowk around 1,500 residents have gathered around a Buddhist temple for the night. Nearby dinner is being cooked in two giant pots for the whole community. “Everyone has made a donation,” said Vidho Ratna.
Some of Patan’s historic buildings have fared less well. At least two ancient temples in the historic Patan Durbar Square have been completely destroyed. However, for the most part, Kathmandu has shown remarkable structural and communal resilience.
Dr Unni Krishnan, the head of disaster response at children’s charity Plan UK says:
Given the type of terrain in Nepal, it is crucial to extend the search and rescue measures to rural areas outside Kathmandu quickly. Rural areas are likely to be hit badly, especially since vulnerable people, including children, will have been most affected. Only when have we assessed the situation outside Kathmandu will the true picture emerge. Our priority is to ensure children and vulnerable people are moved to safety.
Total death toll exceeds 900
The latest reports bring the total death total to more than 900. These include at least:
- 876 in Nepal
- 34 in northern India
- Six in Tibet
- Two in Bangladesh
The BBC is also reporting that more than 1,700 people have also been injured.
Updated
Nepali police say that at least 876 people have now been confirmed dead.
Unicef UK appeals for help
Unicef UK has put out an appeal to help those affected by the earthquake in Nepal. Executive director, David Bull said:
We at Unicef are gravely concerned for children in Nepal affected by the devastating 7.9 earthquake which took place this morning. An earthquake of this size can be deadly, toppling buildings, and destroying roads and infrastructure. Unicef is on the ground, evaluating what needs to be done to immediately respond to the needs of those affected. Communications are down and we don’t yet have a full picture of the devastation, but we fear loss of life and homes destroyed. We will be helping to support Nepal’s children in danger from this earthquake and we need your help to do this. Please go to www.unicef.org.uk to donate now.
Updated
India is sending troops and resources to Nepal.
Mountaineer Alex Gavan, who is in the Himalayas, has tweeted a desperate plea for help.
Avalanche kills 13 on Mount Everest
Peter Beaumont describes the situation on Mount Everest:
As many as 13 people were killed on Everest on Saturday as a massive avalanche – triggered by the earthquake – that swept through base camp. The avalanche trapped other climbers higher on the mountain as those in base camp ran for their lives to escape falling ice and rock.
Pictures from Everest south side base camp showed flattened tents and blocks of rock scattered around a site dusted deep in snow. The avalanche appeared to have swept through the mid section of the strung-out base camp.
Everest base camp is particularly vulnerable situated on a shoulder of rocky glacial moraine below the Kumbu icefall – a maze of crevasses and seracs - through which climbers must navigate an often dangerous path equipped yearly with fixed ropes.
Updated
These photos appear to show that the Everest base camp has been badly damaged by the avalanche:
Reuters has spoken to a tourist office official in Nepal, Mohan Krishna Sapkota:
We are facing a tremendous crisis here and it is hard to even assess what the death toll and the extent of damage could be,” said Mohan Krishna Sapkota, a second tourism official. The trekkers are scattered all around the base camp and some had even trekked further up. It is almost impossible to get in touch with anyone.
Around 300,000 foreign tourists were estimated to be in Nepal for the spring trekking and climbing season. Officials have been overwhelmed by calls from concerned friends and relatives.
Relief efforts in Nepal have been hampered because of a collapse in communication. Many of the reported deaths have been in the more populous areas, but there have also been reports of devastation in outlying, isolated mountainous areas.
An Indian tourist to Nepal, Devyani Pant, has described the moment when “tables started trembling and paintings on the wall fell on the ground.” She said: “I screamed and rushed outside. We are now collecting bodies and rushing the injured to the ambulance. We are being forced to pile several bodies one above the other to fit them in.”
A London-based company, which runs guided mountaineering adventures in the Himalayas, has said that none of its members have been killed or injured in avalanches that were triggered by the earthquake in Nepal.
A post on the website of Himalayan Experience said that everyone was “safe on our side,” including the sherpas.
The company appears to have been running two expeditions on Everest - one climbing the mountain’s north side, and a second group on a longer trek up the south side.
Updated
A Nepalese home ministry official said 467 people had been killed in the Kathmandu Valley.
Updated
Nepali government declares state of emergency
The Nepali government has declared a state of emergency in the affected districts, according to the BBC.
Deputy Prime Minister Bamdev Gautam has appealed for international humanitarian assistance.
Updated
Death toll reaches 758
The death toll has now climbed to 758 people, across four countries.
Indian prime minister Modi has ordered an immediate dispatch of relief and medical teams to Nepal, and the evacuation of Indian tourists.
Meanwhile, Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif has offered “all possible help” that Nepal may need after the earthquake.
AP has released a video showing chaos in the quake’s aftermath:
Updated
Dharhara tower collapses
The ancient Dharhara tower - which is one of the most prominent buildings to have collapsed in the heart of Kathmandu’s historic old city - was one of the city’s biggest tourist attractions.
The white nine-storey tower was once the place where kings were once crowned. It featured a bronze minaret and a spiral staircase of over 200 steps, leading to a small shrine to the Hindu god Shiva.
The Dharhara tower has now been reduced to just its base when the earthquake struck.
Rescue workers were seen dragging bodies from the rubble and TV footage showed chaotic scenes at the site, as people desperately tried to dig through piles of bricks and dust with their bare hands.
Dinesh Acharya, a spokesman for Kathmandu police, said rescue workers were frantically trying to “bring everyone out to safety”.
“Our team is still deployed in Dharara to rescue people. However, we do not know how many are still trapped,” he told AFP.
Updated
These photos were taken by the Guardian’s Pete Pattisson, who is in Kathmandu.
A Foreign Office spokesman was not able to yet confirm whether any of the casualties are British citizens.
We are aware of reports of an earthquake in Nepal. We are urgently looking into it. Our thoughts are with all those affected. Our Embassy staff stand ready to help any British nationals who may need assistance.
The death toll is rising quickly. Reuters is now reporting that at least 688 people have been killed, according to a senior home ministry official in Nepal. This includes 181 people people who have died in the capital, Kathmandu.
An official with Nepal’s mountaineering department has said that the bodies of eight people have been recovered on Mount Everest, following an avalanche triggered by the earthquake. They said that an unknown number of people remain missing or injured.
The death toll in Nepal has reached 618, according to an official from Nepal’s Home Ministry, who was speaking on Indian TV.
Updated
The UN Resident Co-ordinator for Nepal, Jamie McGoldrick, has spoken to told the Guardian’s Pete Pattisson:
It’s difficult to say the extent of the damage. A full scale assessment is not yet complete, but this was a particularly large earthquake and a very shallow one so we are expecting high and significant damage, especially in Lamjung, Gorkha district (the epicenter of the earthquake). There’s no doubt it’s a very big earthquake, but we are fortunate it was not in, or closer to Kathmandu, or the impact would have been catastrophic.
Death toll reaches 449
The death toll in Nepal has reached 449, according to an estimate by the police. Most of the fatalities that have been reported are in the Kathmandu Valley, though there is little information coming from the outlying areas of the region.
Krishna Prasad Dhakal, deputy chief of mission at Nepal’s Embassy in New Delhi, said: “Hundreds of people are feared dead and there are reports of widespread damage to property. The devastation is not confined to some areas of Nepal. Almost the entire country has been hit.”
Ram Narayan Pandey, of the Nepal Disaster Management Authority said: “We are totally cut off from most parts of our country.”
Meanwhile, officials in India say that at least 20 people have been killed in the country, with dozens more injured. Reports also said that two people in Bangladesh have died in the earth quake, on top of more than 100 injuries.
Updated
The Guardian’s Pete Pattisson, who is in Kathmandu, says that up to 160 visitors were at the ancient tower in the city’s centre when it collapsed:
Kathmandu’s iconic Bhimsen Tower, a popular tourist site offering stunning views across the city, has collapsed raising fears of significant loss of life.
Two police officers at the tower separately told The Guardian between 150-160 tickets had been issued to visitors at the time of the earthquake.
The tower, which was around 60 meters high, would have been especially busy on a Saturday. All that now remains is a jagged shard rising from a pile of rubble.
Moments after the earthquake struck, thousands of Kathmandu’s residents rushed onto the streets, gathering in the middle of the mains roads for safety. Many are still outside, too afraid to return home, following a series of strong aftershocks.
The streets are now packed with people inspecting the damage, but the atmosphere is calm, with the police, army and civilian volunteers managing the crowds.
Ishwar Rauniyar says a woman, Srijana Shrestha, was found carrying a one-year-old baby, sitting in a footpath along with many others. She said: “I don’t have courage to go back to home, I will ask my husband to spend a night in the street.”
Here’s the full report by Jason Burke, in Delhi, and Ishwar Rauniyar, in Kathmandu.
Jason Burke, in Delhi, and Ishwar Rauniyar, in Kathmandu, describe the scenes of devastation:
Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world and ill equipped to deal with a major disaster. The country’s only international airport – in Kathmandu - was closed yesterday afternoon as tremors continued.
Locals tried to shift piles of rubble with their bare hands in a bid to reach survivors. Most of the buildings that collapsed appeared to be older, weaker structures made of brick. The historic “durbar square” in Pattan, a neighbourhood of the capital, sustained significant damage.
Their full report will be online soon.
This just in from our correspondent in Kathmandu, Ishwar Rauniyar:
Thousands of people are gathered in the city centre, everyone looking confused [about] what will happen next - local FM stations are asking people not to go back inside the home until five. Walls of hotels like himalaya and of personal houses were collapsed. “I am confused whether to go back to home or not, there are rumours that might earthquake come again,” said Vivek Rai, a 22-year-old who is living in a rented flat in Kathmandu. Rai had come with his friend to visit Darhara but before stepping in the incident happened. “I ran away towards the street and saved myself.”
Kathmandu’s street are full of people with less access to vehicles. People have come out of their houses and are sitting on the street.
Asian News International has tweeted some photos of the devastation in Kathmandu:
An acclaimed British mountaineer, Daniel Mazur, is apparently among those caught after avalanches triggered by the earthquake hit Mount Everest:
Krishna Prasad Dhakal, deputy chief of mission at Nepal’s embassy in New Delhi, said: “Hundreds of people are feared dead and there are reports of widespread damage to property. The devastation is not confined to some areas of Nepal. Almost the entire country has been hit.”
In India, the death toll has also gone up to at least 11, including reports of six people killed by collapsing houses in Uttar Pradesh.
Government officials have said that at least 30 people have been injured on Mount Everest.
Ang Tshering, of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, also said the avalanche apparently occurred between the Khumbu Icefall, a rugged area of collapsed ice and snow, and the base camp where most climbing expeditions have their main camps. Initial reports suggest that the base camp itself was not hit by the avalanche.
April is one of the most popular times to climb Everest because of the good weather conditions. An avalanche in April 2014 just above the base camp on Mount Everest killed 16 Nepali guides.
The AP says that the earthquake has also affected Bangladesh, with reports of two deaths and more than 100 people injured.
Somoy TV station said that one man was killed in the capital Dhaka and another in the northwestern district of Pabna. It said that the injuries happened as people rushed out of homes and shopping malls. It did not give details of the two deaths. Local TV stations and fire services control room aid several buildings were tilted in Dhaka and other towns and cities.
Nepal’s police says that at least 108 people have been killed, according to an “initial estimate”.
Separately, reports say that the country’s Home Ministry has said that at least 71 have been killed.
Here’s some reaction from people on the ground.
A labourer, Pushpa Das, told AP that he ran from his house when the first tremors hit, but was unable to escape a wall that collapsed on to to him, injuring his arm.
It was very scary. The earth was moving ... I am waiting for treatment but the (hospital) staff is overwhelmed.
Jenny Adhikari, a Swedish woman living in Nepal, was on a bus at the time of the quake. She told Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet:
A huge stone crashed only about 20 meters (yards) from the bus ... All the houses around me have tumbled down. I think there are lot of people who have died.
A photojournalist who is in the city of Pokhara, told Sky News:
It was a pretty massive earthquake here, the strongest I’ve ever felt in my life. We’ve all gathered on a tennis court which is the only open space available to us close by ... There is quite a lot of damage. The building I was in has quite a lot of cracks in it. There was a construction site right next to us and several of the new ways have fallen and there was an injury.
Reuters has reported that at least 36 people have died :
Kathmandu’s main civil hospital said 36 bodies had been counted so far after a 7.9 earthquake hit the impoverished Himalayan country of Nepal on Saturday.
Nepal’s Kantipur TV showed at least 21 bodies lined up on the ground
The shallow quake struck west Kathmandu, causing buildings to collapse, injuring many and leaving a pall of dust over the city, witnesses said.
A Twitter feed for mountaineering news has updates on the avalanches near Mount Everest:
Reuters says that a television station in Nepal has shown at least 21 bodies lined up on the ground after the earthquake.
The Times of India says that several mountaineers have been reported missing, after avalanches hit the Mount Everest region.
Indian PM Narendra Modi has reportedly convened a high-level meeting with ministers and top officials to assess the situation. Meanwhile, the defence ministry has put the Indian Army, on standby, it says.
A Twitter user has posted photos that appear to show complete devastation in Nepal.
There are reports that the quake has triggered avalanches in the Mount Everest region of the Himalayas.
Twitter user Alex Gavan, who says he is a mountaineer, has tweeted: “Everest base camp huge earthquaqe then huge avalanche from pumori.Running for life from my tent. Unhurt. Many many people up the mountain.”
Everest base camp huge earthquaqe then huge avalanche from pumori.Running for life from my tent. Unhurt. Many many people up the mountain.
— Alex Gavan (@AlexGAVAN) April 25, 2015
Updated
No fatalities have yet been confirmed by authorities, but reports suggest that at least four people have been killed.
Witnesses have told Reuters that a girl died after a statue fell on her in a park in Kathmandu, while another died in India when her house collapsed.
The main hospital in Kathmandu has seen dozens of people rushed in with broken limbs and other injuries sustained from the quake, though it is unclear how many have been injured.
At least 50 people were trapped in a historic tower in the city.
National radio has warned residents not to go inside any buildings and to stay calm because more aftershocks were feared. A 6.6-magnitude aftershock hit about an hour after the initial quake.
Associated Press has reported that several buildings in the centre of Kathmandu have collapsed, including ancient temples and towers. AP said: “Among them was the Dharahara Tower, one of Kathmandu’s landmarks built by Nepal’s royal rulers in the 1800s and a UNESCO-recognized historical monument. It was reduced to rubble and there were reports of people trapped underneath.”
Updated
A huge 7.9 magnitude earthquake has hit Nepal, the worst tremor in Himalayan nation in more than 80 years brings.
Early reports say the quake has destroyed buildings and caused dozens of injuries.
The epicentre was 50 miles (80km) north-west of Kathmandu, but the earthquake also shook several cities across northern India, and was felt as far away as Lahore in Pakistan.
Nepal’s information minister, Minendra Rijal, told India’s NDTV station that there are reports of damage in and around Kathmandu but no immediate word on casualties. He said rescue teams were on the scene.
The US Geological Survey revised the magnitude from 7.5 to 7.9 and said the quake hit at 11:56 am local time at a relatively shallow depth of seven miles.
The Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, tweeted: “News has come in about an earthquake in Nepal. Several parts of India also experienced tremors.
“We are in the process of finding more information and are working to reach out to those affected, both at home & in Nepal.”
There have so far been no confirmed fatalities.
