BREAKING: Magnitude 7.9 Quake Hits Nepal; 1,910 Confirmed Dead

[Hissyspit]

Last edited Sun Apr 26, 2015, 12:56 AM - Edit history (10)

Source: USGS / Associated Press / NPR

More Than 1,000 Confirmed Dead In Nepal After Powerful Earthquake

APRIL 25, 2015 7:54 AM ET
SCOTT NEUMAN

Authorities in Nepal say at least 1,130 people are dead following a powerful earthquake not far from the capital Kathmandu, where homes and ancient temples collapsed amid the intense temblor and strong aftershocks.

Dozens of people in three neighboring countries were also killed and at least eight were reported dead on Mount Everest and perhaps dozens more trapped by a quake-triggered avalanche that hit the world's tallest peak at the height of the climbing season.

The death toll was likely to continue to rise — perhaps dramatically — as more information comes in from remote and isolated region affected by the magnitude 7.8 quake. The Associated Press says that the earthquake "shook several cities across northern India, and was felt as far away as Lahore in Pakistan, Lhasa in Tibet, and in Dhaka, Bangladesh." Kathmandu's international airport was shut down following the temblor, the news agency says.

"We need support from the various international agencies which are more knowledgeable and equipped to handle the kind of emergency we face now," Nepal's Information Minister Minendra Rijal was quoted by the BBC as saying.

MORE

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/01d0356210ea4647817d680306ef0ddf/strong-earthquake-felt-nepals-capital

Nepal quake death toll reaches 1,805

BY BINAJ GURUBACHARYA AND MUNEEZA NAQVI
APR. 25, 2015 9:36 PM EDT

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Nepal's Home Ministry says the death toll from Saturday's devastating earthquake has reached 1,805.

The latest toll puts the overall regional fatalities at 1,865.

Home Ministry official Laxmi Dhakal said Sunday that at least 4,700 people have been injured in the magnitude 7.8 earthquake.

MORE

@AP: BREAKING: Nepal police official says at least 1,910 have died, including 721 in Kathmandu, in the quake

m.twitter.com/AP

Read more: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2015/04/25/402160910/7-8-quake-hits-nepal-toppling-buildings-killing-at-least-138

---

@BreakingNews: 7.5 magnitude earthquake hits Nepal - USGS

m.twitter.com/BreakingNews

@BreakingNews: Buildings down, roads out after major earthquake hits Nepal earthquake, CNN-IBN reports - @cnnbrk http://t.co/IJ29j3NWto/s/Vqwl

Al Arabiya English – Verified account ?@AlArabiya_Eng

#BreakingNews Tremors felt in New Delhi and other cities in North India: witnesses
11:53 PM - 24 Apr 2015

@BreakingNews: Earthquake in Nepal upgraded by USGS to 7.9 magnitude, 2km deep, casualties taken to hospital - USGS, @AP http://t.co/IPArewzUkc/s/53M4

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/01d0356210ea4647817d680306ef0ddf/strong-earthquake-felt-nepals-capital

Magnitude-7.9 quake hits Nepal; heavy damage

BY BINAJ GURUBACHARYA
APR. 25, 2015 3:14 AM EDT

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — A strong magnitude-7.9 earthquake hit near Nepal's capital of Kathmandu before noon Saturday, causing extensive damage with toppled walls and collapsed buildings, officials said.

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 epicenter was 80 kilometers (49 mile) northwest of Kathmandu, he said. The Kathmandu Valley is densely populated with nearly 2.5 million, with the quality of buildings often poor.

An Associated Press reporter in Kathmandu said a wall in his compound collapsed and there was damage to nearby buildings.

The U.S. Geological Survey revised the magnitude from 7.5 to 7.9 and said the quake hit at 11:56 a.m. local time (0611 GMT) at Lamjung a shallow depth of 11 kilometers (7 miles).

[C Moon]

1. Wow! That's a huge earthquake! :O

[AtheistCrusader]

41. Oh shit, that's a bad place for a monster quake too.

Horrible

[TexasTowelie]

2. From Reuters:

An earthquake measuring 7.7 magnitude struck 80 km east of Pokhara in Nepal on Saturday, about halfway between the town and the capital Kathmandu, the US Geological Survey said, and witnesses said some buldings in Kathmandu had collapsed.

There was no immediate word on damage or casualties. The quake was 31 km deep.

Tremors were felt as far away as New Delhi and other northern cities in India, said witnesses.

(That would be about 250 miles away).

[dixiegrrrrl]

14. Pictures here...scroll down

http://www.breakingnews.com/topic/earthquake-in-south-asia-april-25-2015/

[countryjake]

16. Many more pics here...

Old Kathmandu is in ruins, massive devastation all over Nepal.

https://twitter.com/hashtag/kathmandu



http://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2015/apr/25/earthquake-in-nepal-in-pictures

http://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2015/apr/25/nepal-earthquake-nation-worst-tremor-80-years-kathmandu-live-updates

[bananas]

44. I think they got him out

Not sure but this looks like the same guy

http://mashable.com/2015/04/25/nepal-earthquake-photos/


http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/04/25/huge-earthquake-kills-many-hundreds-nepal-sparks-massive-mt-everest-avalanche

[chillfactor]

3. first off the coast of California....

then New Zealand, now India...what is going on?

[Journeyman]

8. What's going on? Earthquakes. Happen every day, most small, sometimes large. . .

Sometimes people die and buildings are destroyed, most of the time nothing of the sort occurs. Earthquakes. Happen every day. 96 worldwide in the last 24 hours, 645 in the past week, 2,929 in the month, over 37,000 in the past year.

Here's a link if you care to keep track: http://earthquaketrack.com/recent

I live in South California. There were 10 here today (1.5 or greater), over 2,600 in the past year. Most feel like a large truck just went by, though as I get older I feel the small ones more in the pit of my stomach and as a disruption to my equilibrium. We're prepared if one hits, but that's all we can do. That and hope we're in the right spot when one strikes. Best thing about them: They strike without warning. It'd be the pits if, like with a hurricane, we had to watch the tube for a week knowing one was on the way but uncertain where it was going to "strike land."

Hate to be blasé but that's the reality. You're either prepared and lucky or your dependent on the kindness of strangers. Very little middle ground.

And fracking is undoubtedly contributing to the problem. Same as underground nuclear tests in Nevada gave input through the '50s to '80s. All too often, however, the powers that be dismiss those concerns. After all, I imagine they reason, it's ultimately California's fault.

[Corey_Baker08]

43. 96 Earthquakes In 24 Hours, 645 In 7 Days, 3000 In 30 Days & 37,000 In 365 Days Is Normal?

I am honestly shocked at these numbers you laid out.

How long has this amount of earthquakes been normal? Has the number of earthquakes increased significantly over a short amount of time, or has there been a steady but consistent increase in the number of earthquakes?

What would you contribute to the increase in earthquakes? Would I be correct in assuming Global Warming is a major factor?

[jakeXT]

45. normal

[Retrograde]

46. How long? Since the earth's tectonic plates formed

We live on a dynamic, ever-changing planet, where changes happen on both short (e.g., human lifespan) and long (e.g., a geologic era) time scales. We tend to notice things that affect us directly, and not so much those that don't. Small quakes - less than 2.0 - happen daily on fault lines throughout the planet. There are a handful of big events - 8.0 and over - every century or so that make a big splash, but most of the activity is too small to get much notice.

I don't think the total number of earthquakes is increasing (and the San Andreas up here has been much too quiet for my tastes): we've got better reporting and measuring, so we notice them.

[Reter]

50. No, you wouldn't

Global warming (or cooling) has nothing to do with earthquakes. Man can be blamed for a lot, but not this (nor volcanic eruptions).

[Baclava]

29. All the gods are angry

Earthquake Triggers ‘Avalanche’ On Mount Everest, Base Camps Destroyed

A climber Alex Gavan, took to the social media site twitter and posted the emergency run by the climbers . He posted, “running for life from my tent” and further says there were “many, many” people up the mountain at the time.

http://focusnews.com/world/earthquak...reports/23210/

[AtheistCrusader]

42. Its called 'Tectonics'.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tectonics

[2naSalit]

4. And that volcano in Chile

and there was allegedly another volcano eruption in central America last night but I haven't been able to find any info on that one... heard about it while in a state of half sleep Friday morning.

It's pretty busy out there, still pretty calm in Yellowstone.

[OnlinePoker]

25. Here's a good resource page for current volcano activity

http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/erupting_volcanoes.html

[2naSalit]

39. That's one I haven't seen

Thank You!

[FourScore]

5. 7.5 to 7.9 in a city like Nepal at midday...

...there will be extensive casualties.

[2naSalit]

6. 6.6 aftershock just hit...

yikes.

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us2000292y

[2naSalit]

7. and yet another lesser aftershock...

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us20002939

[LeftishBrit]

9. Terrible

[Jesus Malverde]

10. .

[pugetres]

11. There are also reports

of people missing at an Everest base camp due to avalanches.

This is an older article about how terrible a quake of this size could be for Kathmandu:

http://www.ipsnews.net/2013/07/quakes-could-collapse-kathmandu/?utm_content=buffer290ae&utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer

[Little Tich]

12. This is really bad. n/t

[countryjake]

13. Dharahara Tower reduced to rubble with people trapped inside...

https://twitter.com/hashtag/kathmandu




LIVE: Two major quakes rattle Nepal; historic Dharahara Tower collapses, deaths reported in India

http://zeenews.india.com/news/india/live-two-major-quakes-rattle-nepal-historic-dharahara-tower-collapses-deaths-reported-in-india_1584785.html

photo gallery

[LeftInTX]

15. Dang

[muriel_volestrangler]

17. Police initial estimate: 108 dead

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.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2015/apr/25/nepal-earthquake-nation-worst-tremor-80-years-kathmandu-live-updates#block-553b61cde4b05b86e483dbcb

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.
http://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2015/apr/25/nepal-earthquake-nation-worst-tremor-80-years-kathmandu-live-updates#block-553b62c5e4b006cad0a267fe

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.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2015/apr/25/nepal-earthquake-nation-worst-tremor-80-years-kathmandu-live-updates#block-553b635ce4b00a32156dd56f

[mnhtnbb]

27. There's a tweet in this report that says base camp #1 and #2 have been swept away

by the avalanche and many climbers from the north side are missing.


Northmen PK @NorthmenPK

#Everest camp1 and camp 2 swept away by avalanche, many climbers missing. climbers also missing from north side as per reports. #Nepalquake
4:25 AM - 25 Apr 2015

[mnhtnbb]

18. The daughter of DU'er OneGrassRoot and the dad are over there

on their way to Mt. Everest.

She has posted this on fb and asked for prayers and good vibes.

Need big-time prayers, good vibes, whatever you got. My daughter and her dad are trekking to base camp at Mt. Everest. Their itinerary puts them around the town of Thyangboche, Nepal. Kathmandu had a 7.9 earthquake (they left Kathmandu two days ago). There are unconfirmed reports of avalanches on Everest; no reports about the areas between Kathmandu and Everest.

On edit: she just reported she had a text from them that they're ok.

[watoos]

23. A teller from my credit union

is over there. I bought candy bars from her that she used as fund raisers. I think she went over with a church group. I hope she is ok.

[mnhtnbb]

26. Apparently April is a big time of year--weather is good--for people

to make the trek to the base camp of Mt. Everest. This is what OneGrassRoot's daughter
and dad are doing. They aren't planning to climb. But, if the two base camps have
serious damage, I wonder if the trip will be cut short.

Hope the teller is ok! I imagine she'd be in touch with someone from the other credit union staff
so they'd know by Monday.

[B2G]

36. May is the prime month to make a run at the summit

But it's probably overrun with people setting up base and lower camps and acclimatizing to the elevations.

Supposedly the avalanche occurred between the Khumbu Icefall and base camp...the absolute worst possible location. I fear there will be many more fatalities before it's said and done. And I doubt the climbing season will go on.

[muriel_volestrangler]

19. Unconfirmed report via Reuters: police raise death toll to 449

Report raises death toll
Posted at 11:30
We have an unconfirmed report in from Reuters quoting Nepali police which puts the death toll in the quake at 449. This would be a major leap upwards from the current confirmed death toll, and we'll update as soon as we have more on this.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/world-asia-32461412

Reuters have that as a banner but no report yet.

[Bosonic]

21. USGS Estimated/Projected Fatalities is 10,000 +

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us20002926#impact_pager

[morningfog]

24. That is the range I was fearing when I heard the size and location.

So sad.

[justiceischeap]

22. The Guardian currently reporting "nearly 700 people dead"

They have live updates going on:

http://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2015/apr/25/nepal-earthquake-nation-worst-tremor-80-years-kathmandu-live-updates

[Botany]

28. A 7.9 is very big earthquake

I hope I am wrong but the loss of life is might be in the thousands.

[Yo_Mama]

30. Almost certainly. Very tragic. n/t

[Yo_Mama]

31. It could be in the tens of thousands - Nepal asking for international assistance.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-32461019

Nepali Information Minister Minendra Rijal said there had been "massive damage" at the epicentre, from where little information is emerging.

"We need support from the various international agencies which are more knowledgeable and equipped to handle the kind of emergency we face now," he said.

Cell phones aren't working well due probably due to damage.

India is reporting deaths. China is believed to have deaths. The news will get worse before it can get better.

[DCBob]

32. This looks to be catastrophic.

The buildings there are fragile and made of brick and stone very susceptible to earthquakes. The world should be gearing up for major assistance.

[brer cat]

33. Awful news.

It is hard to imagine what the death/injury toll will be when they have cleaned up.

[Tab]

34. I've been there

it's not exactly what I'd call earthquake-ready. And if it caused an avalanche on Chomolungma, you know it trashed a lot of houses/huts in the hills.

Terrible thing for a beautiful place.

[bananas]

35. Flipping through the tv news channels, not seeing any coverage.

CNN, MSNBC, as well as local news stations.

[bananas]

37. twitter #NepalEarthquake

https://twitter.com/hashtag/nepalearthquake?f=realtime&src=hash

via http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/04/25/1380209/-Breaking-7-9-Earthquake-in-Nepal

There are any number of twitter accounts where you can get up-to-date information--I've just been using NepalEarthquake for now.

Also live updates from The Guardian (thanks DRo)

[bananas]

38. Enquiry: Hotline Numbers: For U.S. citizens in Nepal and India

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/04/25/1380209/-Breaking-7-9-Earthquake-in-Nepal

Enquiry: Hotline Numbers:

For U.S. citizens in Nepal

[phone]

Here's numbers in India (Ministry of External Affairs has posted this)

[phone]
[phone]
[phone]

[Hissyspit]

40. Kick with updates. Nt

[Hissyspit]

47. UPDATE: Nepal quake death toll reaches 1,805

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/01d0356210ea4647817d680306ef0ddf/strong-earthquake-felt-nepals-capital

Nepal quake death toll reaches 1,805

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Nepal's Home Ministry says the death toll from Saturday's devastating earthquake has reached 1,805.

The latest toll puts the overall regional fatalities at 1,865.

Home Ministry official Laxmi Dhakal said Sunday that at least 4,700 people have been injured in the magnitude 7.8 earthquake.

[FailureToCommunicate]

48. Friends of ours have many family members there. No word yet on their condition. THANK you Hissy

for your updates.

We are just praying for some better news...

[Hissyspit]

51. I hope your friends hear good news.

[Doctor_J]

49. some mountaineers got buried by an avalanche on Everest. probably related

[Hissyspit]

52. UPDATE: @AP: BREAKING: Nepal police official says at least 1,910 have died

@AP: BREAKING: Nepal police official says at least 1,910 have died, including 721 in Kathmandu, in the quake

m.twitter.com/AP

[2naSalit]

53. From looking at all the

quakes in the past few days along with a big volcanic eruption the other day... I think Mother Earth is pissed off and letting us know it in no small manner.

[former9thward]

54. Quakes happen every day on the earth.

Some big, some small. "Mother earth" -- whatever that means --- is not pissed off. It has been going on since the beginning of time.

[2naSalit]

55. Yes

I am aware of that, I live on top of the super volcano in the Rockies and have taken many geology college courses and audited even more besides actually being paid to tell tourists about as a professional with all the science and terminology. Regardless, I still think the planet is pissed at us.