by REERA YOO | @reeraboo
editor@charactermedia.com
A powerful earthquake hit a remote mountain region of Nepal on Tuesday, killing dozens of people less than three weeks after the country was hit with a devastating 7.8-magnitude earthquake, according to the Associated Press.
Tuesday’s 7.3-magnitude quake, centered midway between the capital of Kathmandu and Mount Everest, struck hardest in the foothills of the Himalayas. Massive landslides destroyed remote villages already damaged from the first quake, while cracked buildings collapsed, blocking main roads. By late afternoon, Nepal’s Home Ministry reported at least 37 deaths and more than 1,000 injuries.
Video footage from our team near Dhunche, #Nepal, after today's #NepalQuake. pic.twitter.com/nR9IlyImyj via @Federation
— Canadian Red Cross (@redcrosscanada) May 12, 2015
Tremors were felt across parts of Asia. In neighboring India, at least 16 people were confirmed to be dead after rooftops or walls collapsed on them, according to India’s Home Ministry. Meanwhile, one death in Tibet has been reported.
Nepal was still shell-shocked from the April 25 earthquake, which killed more than 8,000 people, when the second quake struck. Rattled residents, who had just returned to their homes in the capital earlier this week, found themselves pitching tents and sleeping outdoors once again–afraid that the unstable building will topple and crush them.
“Everyone was saying the earthquakes are over … Now I don’t want to believe anyone,” Ram Hari Sah, a 40-year-old produce vendor, told AP. “I would rather deal with mosquitoes and the rain than sleep in the house.”
South Korea’s foreign ministry announced earlier today that they will be sending a three-member “rapid response team” to Nepal on Wednesday to see if there are any Korean casualties and to determine whether the ministry needs to send another batch of search and rescue workers, according to Yonhap News Agency.
There are currently 600 Korean citizens in Nepal, about 350 of which are tourists and rescue workers, the ministry reports.
Earlier this month, South Korea’s foreign ministry pledged $1 million USD in humanitarian aid and deployed a total of 42 workers and medics to Nepal to help with search and recovery efforts. Several Korean nonprofit organizations, private companies and individuals have made generous donations and sent relief supplies to the quake-hit country.
YG Entertainment donated about $92,500 USD through their fundraising platform. Former Olympic figure skater Kim Yuna also donated $100,000 USD to help the children recover from the disaster. In addition, Seoul National University said it has donated 600 water filters as well as medical supplies to hospitals in Kathmandu.
Tuesday’s quake was followed by a series of six aftershocks of magnitude 5.0 or higher, according to the International Business Times.
If you wish to donate to help the victims of the Nepal earthquake, here are five nonprofit organizations that are collecting donations:
– UNICEF
___
Featured image via Reuters/Athit Perawongmetha
