(MENAFN- The Journal Of Turkish Weekly) Number of dead climbs above 3,200 as emergency services continue rescue operations after devastating earthquake.
The death toll in Nepal following the devastating earthquake which struck two days ago has climbed above 3,200 as rescuers continue to unearth victims.
At least 6,535 people were also injured in the quake and its aftermath, senior Home Ministry official Rameshwor Dangal said on Monday, as emergency services workers continued to search the remains of collapsed buildings, particularly in the Kathmandu valley.
He said: "The rescue operation is going on. There are many helicopters being used to airlift people.
"We need shelters for the many thousands of people who have lost their homes."
Speaking in a radio address, the Minister for Home Affairs Bam Dev Gautam called the earthquake a "national calamity".
He said: "We have mobilized The Nepal Army, Nepal Police and the Armed Police Force across the country.
"We don't know the magnitude of loss yet, but many people have been buried in houses in Kathmandu."
He also called on Nepalis to stay outside amid continuing aftershocks and ordered government offices and hospitals across the country to open.
Nepalis have remained on edge since Saturday's magnitude-7.8 quake destroyed buildings, ripped up roads and set off avalanches in the Himalayas, including one which tore through the Mount Everest base camp.
A second earthquake on Sunday afternoon, measuring magnitude-6.7 according to the U.S. Geological Survey, raised fears of further building collapses.
A further 62 people were also killed in India, according the Indian Express newspaper, while Chinese state media reported 17 deaths in Tibet.
Much of the initial damage assessment has focused on urban areas, but many fear the death toll could also be high in remote regions where the earthquake triggered landslides.
Children's rights group Plan International said in a statement it had sent teams to rural areas.
After returning to Kathmandu from the country's southeast, Plan's Nepal Director Mattias Bryneson said: "There is widespread destruction, collapsed buildings, severely damaged schools and many blocked roads due to landslides in rural areas.
"It is starting to rain in many areas and all over the region people are living outside with little or no shelter, children are crying and health care facilities are overrun."
Hospitals in Kathmandu have been overwhelmed by the scale of the disaster with many reporting a lack of capacity and supplies.
Dipendra Pandey, an orthopedic doctor at Bir Hospital's trauma center: "Now we are having a scarcity of medicine.
"There are some NGOs that have promised to bring medicine and say that they are on their way."
Other hospitals reported dangerously low blood supplies, essential for operating on serious injuries.
Kathmandu residents have camped outside since the earthquake for fear that strong tremors could cause more damage.
Rajeev Ravishankar, a Kathmandu-based journalist, said: "We're just kind of recovering still, people are still uneasy about going back inside buildings.
"There have been a lot of aftershocks all throughout the night and even this morning."
Local people sought to gather food and basic supplies as most shops remained closed, he said, although some street vendors had been selling fruit.
He told The Anadolu Agency: "Some shops are open, kind of. The problem is the damage ... so you can kind of walk in and grab a few items like biscuits, but it's pretty minimal."
The earthquake, the worst to hit the Himalayan nation since 1934, destroyed many old buildings and ruptured roads while telephone and Internet communication was severely disrupted.
Images shared on social media showed widespread devastation.
Kunda Dixit, editor of the Nepali Times newspaper, posted on Twitter: "Most new high rises in #Kathmandu ok, old buildings down. Temples reduced to rubble.
"Aftershocks were major jolts almost as severe as the main quake."
Kathmandu's old district, which was home to numerous protected historical sites, has been the worst hit according to officials.
Several historic temples have collapsed, including in the iconic Durbar Square.
Scores of people were believed to be trapped under the rubble of the historic 62-meter tall Dharahara tower in central Kathmandu, which was brought crashing down by the quake.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted: "We are in the process of finding more information and are working to reach out to those affected, both at home & in Nepal."
The Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a written statement on Saturday no Turkish casualties had been reported while some Turkish citizens in Nepal had been contacted.
"Turkey offers its condolences to the Nepali people and government due to the losses in the earthquake and has launched efforts to provide humanitarian assistance to Nepal," the statement said.
The Turkish Red Crescent dispatched an expert team from Pakistan and Bangladesh to the region and will initially send 1,000 blankets and hundreds of food packages.
Other Turkish aid agencies have sent a 65-strong search-and-rescue team under the coordination of the Prime Ministry Disaster and Emergency Management.
In Washington D.C., the White House said the U.S. was deploying a team of disaster response experts and providing an initial $1 million in relief aid.
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