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Nepal quake toll crosses 3,200
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Anil Giri | 27 Apr, 2015
Hundreds of thousands of people spent a second night out in the open
here and elsewhere in Nepal as the death toll in the devastating
earthquake crossed 3,200 on Monday.
More than 6,000 men, women
and children have also been officially listed injured, many seriously,
in the 7.9 magnitude quake that flattened several buildings and shrines
in the Kathmandu Valley and nearby districts.
An official
admitted to IANS that there was no precise figure about the numbers
taking shelter in relief centres but estimated that this could be as
high as two million.
Backed by international efforts, Nepal's
soldiers, police personnel and rescuers battled against heavy odds to
try rescue those who might still be trapped under debris -- and dig out
the dead.
The shortage of electricity since the Saturday temblor, the worst to hit Nepal after 1934, has compounded the crisis.
Rameshwor
Dangal, head of Nepal's disaster management division, put the latest
death toll at 3,218 and said around 6,500 were injured. An official
warned that the numbers were feared to go up further.
Foreigners too have been badly hit. Authorities in Canberra said more than Over 300 Australians were still missing in Nepal.
The cabinet has declared 29 out of 70 districts as crisis zones. The worst hit is the Kathmandu Valley, a tourist paradise.
The
disaster has severely hit communications all across the Himalayan
nation, making it tough for foreigners stranded in Nepal to contact
their families in other countries.
Families after families in
Kathmandu, which continued to suffer aftershocks, have been camping in
the open since Saturday, relying on food supplied by charitable
organisations.
Kathmandu, a resident said, resembled a mass open camp, with people sleeping on blankets, plastic sheets and cardboard.
One
Kathmandu resident who did not want to be identified by name told IANS:
"My six-month-old daughter and seven-year-son and my wife are taking
shelter in a nearby school since Sunday afternoon. I am also there."
Considering
the extent of devastation and lack of proper communication, the rescue
and relief operation is seen by some as sluggish.
But rescuers were doing their best, others said, entering nearly toppled buildings to rescue the injured and the barely living.
Few
vehicles plied on the streets due to fears of aftershocks. Domestic
flights have been suspended since Sunday. Schools have been shut for
five days, and courts for three days.
Five civil servants from the revenue service perished inside a government building.
The central Nepal Rastra Bank also suffered damage due to the earthquake but the treasury was safe, the bank said.
Barring those engaged in rescue and relief work, no one has gone to work since the Saturday earthquake.
An
official said some two million people had taken shelter in the
Kathamandu Valley in school buildings and open grounds. Social groups
are providing them food and drinking water.
"The situation is really chaotic," added another Kathmandu resident.
Some
hospitals continued to treat the injured in the open due to fear of
aftershocks that have already caused cracks in the buildings.
The Saturday quake also jolted India, Bangladesh and Tibet.
Nepal
has sought assistance from the international community, both to save
those still trapped under the debris and to rebuild the country.
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