00:00 Nepal, a landlocked country nestled in the Himalayas, experienced a devastating earthquake
00:07 that has claimed the lives of over 130 individuals and has left many more injured.
00:13 With communications cut off at many places in the Himalayan country, the toll is expected
00:18 to rise.
00:19 The poor mountainous nation wedged between Asian giants China and India has been hit
00:24 by quakes often, with the deadliest recorded in 2015 when about 9,000 people were killed
00:30 in two earthquakes.
00:31 Let us look at some of the worst earthquakes that have hit the country since 2015.
00:38 April and May 2015
00:41 Nepal experienced the most devastating earthquake in its history on April 25 when the quake
00:47 struck at 4 minutes to midday.
00:50 This earthquake measured a magnitude of 7.8 on the Richter scale and was followed by a
00:55 second tremor 17 days later, resulting in a total of 9,000 casualties.
01:02 Overall 8 million people were impacted by the 2015 earthquake, often referred to as
01:07 the Gorkha earthquake, which is almost one-third of the population of Nepal.
01:12 The housing sector was by far the most affected, also given that numerous houses in poorer
01:17 rural areas did not have any seismic-resistant features.
01:21 Over 500,000 houses were destroyed and another 269,000 damaged, which included historical
01:29 and cultural monuments recognized as UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
01:34 In addition, it also destroyed or damaged infrastructure livelihoods, example, in the
01:38 agriculture and tourism sector were also critically impacted.
01:43 The most lethal earthquake Nepal had previously faced occurred in 1934, claiming the lives
01:48 of at least 8,519 people within Nepal and causing the unfortunate loss of thousands
01:54 more in neighboring India.
01:56 September 16, 2020
01:59 An earthquake measuring magnitude 6 struck Nepal and tremors caused by the quake were
02:04 felt in the capital, Kathmandu.
02:07 The earthquake epicenter was in the same district where landslides that year killed 75 people
02:12 and 40 people went missing.
02:13 More than 1,500 households had been displaced and above 3,000 households had to be relocated
02:19 in safer places.
02:20 The district was one of the most affected by the 2015 earthquake also, with 3,571 people
02:26 killed and 1,565 injured and 78,500 houses completely destroyed.
02:34 November 2022
02:37 On November 9, an earthquake in western Nepal killed at least six villagers, four of them
02:42 children as the tremor destroyed mud and brick houses in remote communities living in the
02:46 foothills of the Himalayas.
02:48 A couple of days later, on November 12, another earthquake of magnitude 5.4 struck Nepal,
02:53 shaking houses in the Himalayan country and India.
02:57 January 24, 2023
03:00 At least one person died and more than two dozen houses were damaged in a remote Nepalese
03:04 district after an earthquake of magnitude 5.6.
03:07 Tremors were felt as far away as New Delhi.
03:11 October 3, 2023
03:14 In western Nepal, a pair of earthquakes struck, resulting in 17 people sustaining injuries,
03:19 causing structural damages to homes and triggering a landslide that obstructed a significant
03:24 highway.
03:25 Following these seismic events with magnitudes of 6.3 and 5.3, which occurred in the Bajhang
03:30 district along the border with India, a landslide occurred, blocking access to the southern
03:34 plains via the affected road.
03:37 November 3, 2023
03:40 Recently, a powerful earthquake rocked the western region of Jajarkot, resulting in the
03:44 tragic loss of more than 130 lives and leaving numerous individuals injured.
03:49 The impact of the quake was so intense that it caused buildings to collapse in the affected
03:52 areas and its tremors were felt as far away as New Delhi, the capital of neighboring India.
03:59 The German Research Center for Geosciences measured the quake at magnitude 5.7, while
04:04 the US Geological Survey pegged it at 5.6.
04:07 Rescue operations are underway in Nepal's Jajarkot and the death toll may rise further.
04:18 [MUSIC PLAYING]
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