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Sita
Karka, suffering two broken legs from Saturday's massive earthquake, is
assisted into an ambulance by Nepalese soldiers and police after arriving by
helicopter from the heavily-damaged Ranachour village at a landing zone in the
town of Gorkha, Nepal, Tuesday, April 28, 2015. Helicopters crisscrossed the
skies above the high mountains of Gorkha district on Tuesday near the epicenter
of the weekend earthquake, ferrying the injured to clinics, and taking
emergency supplies back to remote villages devastated by the disaster. (AP
Photo/Wally Santana)
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The death toll from Nepal's
devastating earthquake could reach 10,000, the prime minister said on Tuesday,
as residents frustrated by the government's slow response used their bare hands
to dig for signs of their loved ones.
"The
government is doing all it can for rescue and relief on a war footing,"
Prime Minister Sushil Koirala told Reuters. "It is a challenge and a very
difficult hour for Nepal."
Entire
villages have been wiped out and more than 1.4 million people are in need of
food and water, according to the latest reports from crisis-hit Nepal.
Meanwhile
the agonizing wait for news of loved ones goes on for the families of British
and Irish people still missing in the Himalayan country after Saturday's
devastating earthquake.
The
death toll in the worst earthquake to hit the country for more than 80 years
has risen to more than 4,300 and thousands more are injured and homeless.
International
aid has finally begun arriving in the Himalayan nation of 28 million people,
three days after Saturday's 7.9 magnitude quake, but disbursement is slow.
According to the home (interior) ministry, the confirmed death toll stands at
4,349, with over 7,000 injured.
Koirala
did not say on what he was estimating the leap in the death toll, but the
government has said it is still to establish contact with some remote regions.
"The
death toll could go up to 10,000 because information from remote villages hit
by the earthquake is yet to come in," he said.
The
United Nations said 8 million people were affected by the quake and that 1.4
million people were in need of food.
Nepal's
most deadly quake in 81 years also triggered a huge avalanche on Mount Everest
that killed at least 17 climbers and guides, including four foreigners, the
worst single disaster on the world's highest peak.
All
of the climbers who had been stranded at camps high up Everest had been flown
by helicopters to safety, mountaineers reported on Tuesday.
A
series of aftershocks, severe damage from the quake, creaking infrastructure
and a lack of funds have slowed rescue efforts in the impoverished, mountainous
country sandwiched between India and China. In the capital Kathmandu, youths
and relatives of victims were digging into the ruins of destroyed buildings and
landmarks.
"Waiting
for help is more torturous than doing this ourselves," said Pradip Subba,
searching for the bodies of his brother and sister-in-law in the debris of
Kathmandu's historic Dharahara tower. The 19th century minaret collapsed on
Saturday as weekend sightseers clambered up its spiral stairs.
"Our
hands are the only machine right now," said the 27-year-old, part of a
group of locals pulling out bricks and blocks of concrete with cloth masks over
their faces to ward off the stench of rotting bodies. "There is just no
one from the government or the army to help us."
Scores
of people were killed in the collapse of the tower.
Elsewhere
in the capital's ancient Durbar Square, groups of young men cleared rubble from
around an ancient temple, using pickaxes, shovels and their bare hands. A few
policemen stood by, watching.
The
head of neighbouring India's National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), one of
the first foreign organizations to arrive in Nepal to help in the search and
rescue effort, said finding survivors and the bodies of the dead would take
time.
NDRF
Director General O.P. Singh said heavy equipment could not fit through many of
the narrow streets of Kathmandu.
"You
have to remove all this rubble, so that will take a lot of time ... I think
it's going to take weeks," he told Indian television channel NDTV late on
Monday.
Slept
In the Open
Many
people across Nepal slept in the open for a third night, their homes either
flattened or threatened by tremors that spread more fear among a traumatized
population.
In
Kathmandu, as elsewhere, thousands are sleeping on pavements, roads and in
parks, many under makeshift tents.
Hospitals
are full to overflowing, while water, food and power are scarce, raising fears
of waterborne diseases.
There
were some signs of normality on Tuesday, however, with fruit vendors setting up
stalls on major roads and public buses back in operation.
But
with aid slow to reach many of the most vulnerable, some Nepalis were critical
of the government.
"The
government has not done anything for us," said Anil Giri, who was with
about 20 volunteers looking for two of his friends presumed buried under
rubble. "We are clearing the debris ourselves with our bare hands."
Officials
acknowledged they were overwhelmed by the scale of the disaster.
"The
big challenge is relief," said Chief Secretary Leela Mani Paudel, Nepal's
top bureaucrat.
"We
urge foreign countries to give us special relief materials and medical teams.
We are really desperate for more foreign expertise to pull through this
crisis."
The
situation is worse in remote rural areas. Highways have been blocked by
landslides, and many villages and communities are without water and
electricity, villagers surviving on salvaged food and with no outside help.
While
aid has begun arriving in the capital, including food, medical supplies, tents
and dogs trained for rescue efforts, the authorities are struggling to deliver
relief further afield.
A
crush at the main international airport, where relief material and rescue teams
are flying in while thousands of residents are trying to leave, has slowed the
flow of aid.
India
and China were among the first contributors to an international effort to
support Nepal's stretched resources.
On
Monday, the United States announced an additional $9 million in aid for Nepal,
bringing total U.S. disaster funding to US$10 million.
U.S. and Australian
military transport planes carrying search-and-rescue personnel and supplies
were headed to Nepal.
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