A violent earthquake has hit Nepal.
The toll, still provisional, is over 130 dead and around 150 injured. The districts of Jajarkot and West Rukum, in the west of the country and close to the epicentre, were the most damaged. Rescuers are still busy searching for the missing.
The earthquake - which according to the National Seismological Center of Nepal had a magnitude of 6.4 - was recorded at 11.47pm local time. In Jajarkot alone there were 92 deaths, including the deputy mayor of the municipality of Nalgad, Sarita Singh, and 55 injured, some of whom were transported to more equipped hospitals in nearby cities and others are hospitalized in local health facilities.
In West Rukum there were 36 victims and 85 injured. Some small towns such as Aathbiskot, Sanibheri, Bheri, Nalgad, Kushe, Barekot and Chedagad were particularly affected. All district security forces are involved in the operations. The police and army were also deployed. “Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal expressed her deep sorrow over the loss of lives in Friday night's earthquake and mobilized all security agencies for immediate rescue and relief,” read a post from the Prime Minister's office. Nepalese Prime Minister on X.
«I am deeply saddened by the loss of life and damage caused by the earthquake in Nepal. India stands in solidarity with the people of Nepal and is ready to provide all possible assistance,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote in a message on social media.
Earthquakes are frequent phenomena in Nepal , which sits on the "ridge" where the Tibetan and Indian tectonic plates meet, and every century they move two meters closer to each other, causing pressure that is released in the form of an earthquake. In 2015, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake and subsequent aftershocks killed around 9,000 people.
(Unioneonline/D)