A 6.4-magnitude earthquake in Nepal caused the deaths of at least 54 people in the northwestern mountain region, Nepalese authorities said Friday, expecting the number of victims to rise.
Nepal’s National Earthquake Monitoring and Research Center measured the quake at a magnitude of 6.4 and indicated that the epicenter was in Jajarkot, about 400 kilometers northeast of Nepal’s capital Kathmandu.
An earthquake shook the northwestern districts of Nepal, and authorities said at least 54 people were killed and dozens of others injured as rescue teams searched mountain villages.
Authorities said the number of casualties was expected to rise and noted that communications with many villages had been lost.
The earthquake killed at least 28 people in the Rukum district, where several houses collapsed, police officer Narvaraj Bhattarai said, according to Reuters.
At least 26 people were killed in neighboring Jajarkot district, said Harish Chandra Sharma, a government official.
The US Geological Survey initially said the earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 5.6 took place at a depth of 17.9 kilometers.
Notable earthquake, preliminary information: M 5.6 – 42 km S of Jumla, Nepal https://t.co/BPIEGFOQir
– USGS Earthquakes (@USGS_Quakes) November 3, 2023
The earthquake occurred shortly before midnight, when many people were already sleeping in their homes and the quake was also felt in the Indian capital New Delhi.
#BREAK: Northern India including Bihar Patna, Delhi NCR, Gurgaon, Haryana and Nepal hit by a terrifying earthquake.#earthquake #Delhi #Nepal #DelhiNCR #Noida #Quakes #भूकंप #Bihar #Patna pic.twitter.com/5i7Esk6HqE
– Vidarbha Times (@VidarbhaaTimes) November 3, 2023
Earthquakes are common in the mountains of Nepal.
In 2015, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake killed about 9,000 people and damaged about a million structures.
Source: DN
