The magnitude-7.9 earthquake which hit Nepal on Saturday has caused a death toll so far of at least 2,200 people, and that is expected to climb, according to the Home Ministry. At least 5,000 people were injured. Casualties were also reported in neighbouring India, China, and Bangladesh.

The earthquake, which occurred at around noon on Saturday, is the most powerful such disaster to hit Nepal since the 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake. It affected at least 25 of the country's 75 districts. Centuries-old buildings were destroyed in UNESCO World Heritage sites in the Kathmandu Valley. 80% of the temples in the touristy Kathmandu Durbar Square was destroyed. The quake triggered a deadly avalanche on Mount Everest, and several aftershocks, according to media reports.
The earthquake had its epicentre around 75 km northwest of the capital Kathmandu. It occurred at a busy time of year for the trekking and climbing season, with an estimated 300,000 foreign tourists in the country, reported Reuters. Nepal, which has around 28 million people, relies heavily on tourism, principally trekking and Himalayan mountain climbing.
Tourism official Mohan Krishna Sapkota said it was difficult to assess deaths and damage around the world's tallest peak, Mt Everest.
Nepal sits at the boundary between two plates of Earth’s crust, one of which supports India to the south and the other Eurasia to the north, reported Associated Press. The Indian plate is moving at 45 mm a year under the Eurasian plate, causing earthquakes. Over millions of years, such quakes have led to the uplift of the Himalayas.
The earthquake in 1934, which measured 8.0, killed more than 8,500 people.
No loss estimates have been provided yet of Saturday's disaster.
However, an earthquake of magnitude of 6.8 in Eastern Nepal in 2012, caused an economic loss of over NPR4 billion (US$39.3 million), according to the Ministry of Housing and Physical Planning. The economic losses from Saturday's quake are expected to be significantly higher.

Source: eDaily