New Delhi: Relief material is loaded into an Indian Air Force aircraft headed to Nepal (Photo: PTI)
An injured child receives medical attention outside a hospital at Kathmandu. The hospitals have reached capacity and tratment is being offered at the yards.
volunteers work to remove the debris at the site of the historic Dharahara tower, which collapsed after the earthquake.
Rescue workers look for trapped victims under a collapsed building in Kathmandu.
A rescue worker attempts to remove the debris at a site to retrieve a dead body.
People rest on the debri at the royal square. It housed the old royal palaces and was a recognised as a UNESCO world heritage site.
An earthquake's power increases by 10 times with each increase in the number of its scale. A magnitude 7 quake is capable of widespread and heavy damage while an 8 magnitude quake can cause tremendous damage.
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. It was the largest shallow quake since the 8.2 temblor off the coast of Chile on April 1, 2014.
In Kathmandu, dozens of people were gathered in the parking lot of Norvic International Hospital, where thin mattresses were spread on the ground for patients rushed outside, some wearing hospital pajamas.
Robin Trygg, a climber, was in a basecamp on the Cho Oyu mountain at an altitude of 5,600 meters (18,480 feet) when he felt the quake. "We were sitting in the tent and drinking tea when all of a sudden the earth began shaking. We didn't understand
The economy of Nepal, a nation of 27.8 million people, is heavily dependent on tourism, principally trekking and Himalayan mountain climbing.
While the extent of the damage and the scale of the disaster are yet to be ascertained, the quake will likely put a huge strain on the resources of this poor country best known for Everest, the highest mountain in the world.
The Kathmandu Valley is densely populated with nearly 2.5 million people, and the quality of buildings is often poor.
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.
As the ground began to shake, several buildings collapsed in the center of the capital, the ancient Old Kathmandu, including centuries-old temples and towers, said resident Prachanda Sual.
The quake's epicenter was 80 kilometers (50 miles) northwest of Kathmandu, and it had a depth of only 11 kilometers (7 miles), which is considered shallow in geological terms. The shallower the quake the more destructive power it carries.
While details are unclear with communications limited to the Everest region, Tshering said the avalanche did not appear to have hit the base camp itself.
Tshering of the Nepal Mountaineering Association 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. (backslash)
A senior mountaineering guide, Ang Tshering, said an avalanche swept the face of Mt. Everest after the earthquake, and government officials said at least 30 people were injured.
China said two of its citizen was killed at the Nepal-China border. Television reports from Bangladesh said 2 people were killed and about 100 injured. The Tibetan government said six people were killed in Tibet.
The states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Sikkim, which share a border with Nepal, have reported building damage. There have also been reports of damage in the northeastern state of Assam.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi called a meeting of top government officials to review the damage and disaster preparedness in parts of India that felt strong tremors.
The earthquake also shook several cities across northern India, and was felt as far away as Lahore in Pakistan, Lhasa in Tibet, and in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Pushpa Das, a labourer, ran from the house when the first quake struck but could not escape a collapsing wall that injured his arm. "It was very scary. The earth was moving... I am waiting for treatment but the (hospital) staff is overwhelmed," he
Earlier the country's Home Ministry had said one Chinese citizen was killed on the border, two in Bangladesh and six in Tibet in the quake. Dozens of people with injuries were being brought to the main hospital in central Kathmandu.
An official from Nepal's mountaineering department said bodies of eight people have been recovered on Mount Everst after the massive earthquake triggered an avalanche. Gyanendra Shretha said an unknown number of people remain missing or injured.
Deaths have been reported from all parts of Nepal except the far west. All security personnel have been deploywed to rescue and assist those in need, national police spokesman Kamal Singh Bam told AFP.
A magnitude-6.6 aftershock hit about an hour later, and smaller aftershocks continued to ripple through the region for hours.
The quake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.9 struck before noon and was most severely felt in the capital as well as the densely populated Kathmandu Valley.
One hundred and eighty one people have died in Kathmandu, the Nepal government has said. Thirty people have died so far in neighbouring countries, over 20 in India.
A powerful earthquake struck Nepal Saturday, killing at least 686 people, as the violently shaking earth collapsed houses, leveled centuries-old temples and triggered avalanches in the Himalayas. It was the worst temblor to hit the nation in over 80
Sabnam Shmesth, right, is overcome with emotion as she takes part in a prayer service for victims of the Nepal earthquake Saturday, April 25, 2015 at International Nepali Church in Irving, Texas. (Photo: AP)
Laxmi Shristha, Marium Chhetri, left to right, Gayatri Sharma, Talence Dhakal and his mother, Karuna Dhakal, take part in a prayer service for victims of the Nepal earthquake Saturday, April 25, 2015 at International Nepali Church in Irving, Texas (
People gather beside damaged buildings after an earthquake in Kathmandu, capital of Nepal, Saturday, April 25, 2015. A strong earthquake shook Nepal's capital and the densely populated Kathmandu Valley (Photo: AP)
People try to lift the debris from a temple at Hanumandhoka Durbar Square after an earthquake in Kathmandu, capital of Nepal. A strong earthquake shook Nepal's capital and the densely populated Kathmandu Valley before noon Saturday, causing
Climbers and guides carry an injured after an avalanche struck Everest Base Camp in Nepal (Photo: AP)
Tents are seen set up for climbers on the Khumbu Glacier, with Mount Khumbutse, center, and Khumbu Icefall, right, seen in background, at Everest Base Camp in Nepal. (Photo: AP)
The scene after an avalanche triggered by a massive earthquake swept across Everest Base Camp (Photo: AP)
Nightfall after an avalanche triggered by a massive earthquake swept across Everest Base Camp, Nepal (Photo: AP)
People approach the scene after an avalanche triggered by a massive earthquake swept across Everest Base Camp, Nepal (Photo: AP)
A man approaches the scene after an avalanche triggered by a massive earthquake swept across Everest Base Camp, Nepa. An avalanche triggered by a massive earthquake in Nepal smashed into a base camp between the Khumbu Icefall, a notoriously
Nepal Earthquake: Indian Air Force rescues mountaineers