At least 157 people have died as a result of the earthquake in Nepal. The survivors are holding out in the open – because their houses have been destroyed and because they fear further aftershocks.
Just a few poles and a cloth or plastic sheet over them – they are makeshift tents to protect yourself from the cold. Photos from the AP news agency show such housing. At night the temperatures were seven or eight degrees Celsius.
Thousands of men, women and children were forced to stay outside in the area hardest hit by the earthquake. Their houses – or at least what’s left of them – are often only a few meters away. The houses were destroyed or at least badly damaged, says a man from the village.
Great fear of aftershocks
Houses in this poor area of western Nepal are mostly built of stone, clay and wood. According to measurements by the Helmholtz Center in Potsdam, they could not withstand an earthquake of magnitude 5.8. The few concrete buildings remain standing, but they are also damaged.
People are afraid of aftershocks. In the morning there was actually one – luckily only with a magnitude of 3.6. The large earthquake hit the region shortly before midnight on Friday. Many people were surprised by this in their sleep. They could no longer save themselves. Ten to twelve people probably died in his village, says a resident.
Survivors search for belongings in the rubble – many mud houses could not withstand the quake.
Doctors have to treat many broken bones
The Nepalese government is trying to bring aid to all affected villages. Military helicopters can also fly again during the day. Landslides prevented rescue teams from making progress yesterday. It is feared that numerous people are still lying under the rubble – the number of dead could rise, as could the number of injured.
Many of the injured are being treated in the Bheri hospital. In more serious cases they fly to the capital Kathmandu. In Bheri there are mostly people with broken bones, says a doctor. “Thirty-one or 32 injured patients were brought to the hospital here after the earthquake. Most of the patients suffered fracture injuries. Many children were also affected.”
Head of government in the disaster region
Yesterday, Chief Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal was in the area and visited injured people in hospitals. For Nepal it was the worst earthquake since 2015. At that time, almost 8,000 people were killed in a series of severe earthquakes and parts of the historic old town of Kathmandu were destroyed. Such earthquakes are not uncommon in this region. The Himalayas are considered extremely earthquake prone. This is where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet.