“The earthquake was perceptible in Uttarakhand's Pithoragarh (80 km away from the center), Dharchula (88 km away from the center), Joshimath (205 km away) and Rishikesh, along with Delhi and Lucknow," Dr OP Mishra, Director, National Centre for Seismology was quoted as saying.
NEPAL EARTHQUAKE
An earthquake of magnitude 6.6 in Nepal early on Wednesday killed four children and two adults. At least five people were left wounded in the Nepal earthquake. Several houses were also collapsed as the earthquake swept through the western district of Doti, and shook New Delhi in India.
Local media showed mud and brick houses destroyed by the earthquake in the Himalayan country and rescuers digging through the rubble to look for survivors. Women in the district, about 430 km (270 miles) west of the capital, Kathmandu, were shown sitting in the open with babies wrapped in blankets to shield them from the cold.
The earthquake has come a few years after Nepal was shook by two major jolts in 2015 that killed 9,000 people, destroyed whole towns and centuries-old temples. Nepal was still rebuilding following those two earthquakes.
EYEWITNESSES RECOUNT MOMENTS
The eyewitnesses who were jolted out of their said they heard window panes rattling, and people running out of their houses in panic. They waited outside in anticipation of aftershocks for hours.
"I woke up and ran outside after I heard the window panes rattling and saw the fan swaying," said Prabha, a resident of Kashni village in Pithoragarh. A shopkeeper in Munsiyari said, "A second jolt was also felt at 6.29 am. But it was milder in comparison."
People standing in huddles outside their houses were seen sending messages on their mobile phones to their relatives and friends.
"We woke up at the dead of night and rushed to safety. However, no damage was caused in our village. We are in touch with those in the interior parts of the district to find out if they suffered any damage," Mohit Bhandari, a villager from Sailekh in Nepal's Baitari district, said.
"Villagers rushed out of their homes immediately after the jolts that lasted for more than five seconds. Even after the jolts were over, they were afraid of going back to their homes anticipating aftershocks," said Santosh Raj Joshi, a member of the Niglasaini Nagar Palika in Baitari.
(With PTI inputs)
