Nepal Quake Toll Tops 5,000 As Aid Reaches Epicenter Area

Local Editor

Aid reached a hilly district near the epicenter of Nepal's earthquake for the first time Wednesday; four days after the quake struck and as the death toll from the disaster passed the 5,000 mark.

As relief efforts continue in the Kathmandu Valley, the UN said the response was broadening to include areas such as Dhading and Gorkha.

Furthermore, thousands of people were queuing to board buses and leave the capital, amid fears of further aftershocks.

The government was providing free transport for Kathmandu residents. School buses had been sent to supplement overstretched services.

Moreover, rescue operations resumed on Wednesday following bad weather.

More than eight million people had been affected by the quake, the UN said. About 10,000 people had been injured.
In addition, hundreds of thousands of people continued to live in temporary camps, in squalid conditions with very little food and water.

As a result, anger and frustration had been mounting, with many people sleeping out in the open for a fourth night.

Although planes carrying food and other supplies had been steadily arriving at Kathmandu's small airport, the aid distribution process remains fairly chaotic, with Nepalese officials having difficulty directing the flow of emergency supplies.

About 200 people blocked traffic in the capital Wednesday to protest the slow pace of aid delivery. The protesters faced off with police and there were minor scuffles but no arrests were made.

However, police arrested dozens of people on suspicion of looting abandoned homes as well as causing panic by spreading rumors of another big quake. Police official Bigyan Raj Sharma said 27 people were detained for stealing.

But in a sign that life was inching back to normal, banks in Kathmandu opened for a few hours Wednesday and stuffed their ATMs with cash, giving people access to money.

Source: News agencies, Edited by website team