A strong earthquake struck eastern Nepal onTuesday. More than 40 people were killed. Nepal'shome ministry says more than 1,100 others werehurt. The earthquake also shook other parts ofSouth Asia. At least four people were killed in India,with another death reported in Tibet.
American scientists say the quake measured 7.3 inmagnitude. They said it was centered about 80kilometers east of the capital, Kathmandu. Within anhour, six more small quakes hit the area. Thestrongest of these aftershocks measured 6.3 inmagnitude.
Nepal is still recovering from a 7.8 earthquake three weeks ago. It was the strongest quake tohit the mountainous country in 80 years. More than 8,000 people were killed, and thousandsof homes destroyed. Rescue workers have yet to reach all of the towns and villages that weredamaged by the quake.
Sudarshan Shrestha works for the international aid group Save The Children. He told VOA hewas in a hospital in Kathmandu when the quake hit Tuesday. He said the hospital did not appearto be damaged. But he later saw other buildings near it that had collapsed.
"What we saw was like chaos and pandemonium with all the patients inside the buildingrunning out, and maybe 300 to 350 people, patients inside the building running out."
Mr. Shrestha said Save The Children was already having difficulty meeting the needs of peopleafter the April 25th earthquake. He says the new quake and the coming rainy season will makethe group's job even harder.
"It's going to be difficult to get back on our feet just in terms of responding to relief needs asthe monsoon is away in just about four weeks or five weeks time, so we really have to thinkhard about how we respond to the needs of the people."
Rose Foley works for the United Nations Children's Fund. She was also in the capital when theearthquake hit Tuesday. She says aid workers sought safety under tables as their buildingshook. She says they later went outside.
She said the United Nations is worried about the effect of the second quake on children whowere already in need.
The government and aid agencies have been working to provide food, water and shelter. Butrescue efforts have been slowed by aftershocks, bad weather and problems reaching isolatedparts of the country.
Last week, the U.N. said it needs $415 million to help the people of Nepal. U.N. officials said theyhad received only $22 million in donations.
Jamie McGoldrick is the chief U.N. official in Nepal. He says the agency needs more moneyquickly. He says workers are trying to find shelter for people before the monsoon seasonbegins in June. Monsoon rains often cause avalanches and flooding.
