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Another Powerful Earthquake Strikes Nepal

Residents gather in an open area after an earthquake hit in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Tuesday. It was the second major earthquake in less than three weeks.
Bikram Rai
/
AP

A magnitude-7.3 earthquake struck Nepal on Tuesday, just over two weeks after a massive magnitude-7.8 quake killed more than 8,000 people.

The United States Geological Survey puts today's quake as close to the capital, Kathmandu, as the one two weeks ago.

From Kathmandu, Cindy Stein, the director of global programs for , sent this update late Tuesday:

"I'm in a very communal tent in a parking lot right now, The city is in a cryogenic freeze. Nobody is going anywhere and most everything is closed. We set up a camp, there's 100s of people and no electricity. I had purchased tarps for distribution yesterday so we set up communal areas. The city is a wreck. Saw many buildings just crushed. Many aftershocks. Nobody will go indoors and like 1000 wild dogs barking."

The epicenter of the quake was near the Chinese border, about 50 miles from Kathmandu. Estimates of the death toll range from dozens to 61. More than 1,000 people were injured. News footage showed crowds of residents standing in the middle of the streets in Kathmandu after evacuating.

The Nepali Times posted pictures of buildings and homes that had collapsed.

Updated at 7:18 p.m. ET Deaths In India, China

Nepali media said the toll from Tuesday's quake has reached 61. The BBC says the number is 48. The Associated Press says dozens are dead.

India's Home Ministry says at least 16 people in the country were killed by the quake as roofs or walls fell on them. In China, one person died in Tibet, local media said.

Update at 3:53 p.m. ET. Death Toll Rises:

Emergency officials in Nepal have confirmed that there are at least 37 people dead in Tuesday's earthquake.

Update at 1:53 p.m. ET. Marine Helicopter Missing:

A Marine Corps helicopter helping with the relief effort today has been declared missing. We've written a separate post on that incident.

Update at 7:46 a.m. ET. Parliament Runs:

Parliament was in session the moment the earthquake struck on Tuesday. It means that cameras were rolling and they captured the MPs leaving the building as the ground begins to shake:

Update at 7:06 a.m. ET. 19 Reportedly Dead:

At least 19 people were killed in Nepal and 981 were injured, home ministry official Laxmi Prasad Dhakal told Reuters.

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Eyder Peralta is NPR's East Africa correspondent based in Nairobi, Kenya.
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