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Reuters

Lana Lam

Residents of Kathmandu described scenes of panic and devastation yesterday after the 7.8-magnitude earthquake razed houses and levelled centuries-old temples in Nepal's capital.
Among the buildings that were destroyed was the 19th-century, nine-storey Dharhara tower, a major tourist attraction in the heart of the city's old quarter.
"It was difficult to breath, but I slowly moved the debris. Someone then pulled me out. I don't know where my friends are," Dharmu Subedi, 36, who was standing outside the tower when it collapsed, said from a hospital bed.
Rescue workers were seen dragging bodies from the rubble and TV footage showed chaotic scenes, as people desperately tried to dig through bricks and dust with their bare hands.
Kathmandu police spokesman Dinesh Acharya said rescuers were frantically trying to "bring everyone out to safety".
"Our team is still deployed in Dharhara to rescue people. However, we do not know how many are still trapped," he said.
People took to social media to express their dismay at the historic site's collapse. "Devastating to see Dharhara (Bhimsen Tower) collapsed," user Prabir Bhatt said on Twitter.

The quake was more destructive for being shallow, toppling buildings and opening gaping cracks in roads.
Indian tourist Devyani Pant was in a Kathmandu coffee shop with friends when "suddenly the tables started trembling and paintings on the wall fell on the ground".
"I screamed and rushed outside," she said by telephone from the capital. "I can see three bodies of monks trapped in the debris of a collapsed building near a monastery. We are trying to pull the bodies out and look for anyone who is trapped."
Shirish Vaidya, a businessman, was with his family in his house on the outskirts of Kathmandu, when the quake struck.
"It is hard to describe. The house was shaking like crazy. We ran out and it seemed like the road was heaving up and down," he said. "I don't remember anything like this before. Even my parents can't remember anything this bad."
Kathmandu resident Anupa Shrestha recounted scenes of panic and mayhem, saying "everything started shaking, everything fell down".
The quake tore through the middle of highways in the capital and also caused damage to the country's only international airport, which was briefly closed.
Across the city, rescuers scrabbled through the rubble of destroyed buildings, among them ancient, wooden Hindu temples.

There were similar scenes outside the capital.
"Our village has been almost wiped out. Most of the houses are either buried by landslide or damaged by shaking," said Vim Tamang, a resident of Manglung village near the epicentre.
He said half the villagers were missing or dead. "All the villagers have gathered in the open area," he said. "We don't know what to do. We are feeling helpless."
The tragedy left many Nepalis in Hong Kong scrambling to find out news of loved ones.
Dhiraj Gurung, 30, who moved from Nepal to Hong Kong in 2009, spent several hours calling several of his close friends in Kathmandu.
"I was worried about my friends and finally, just now, I've been able to reach two of them," he said last night. "They told me they are safe but they are feeling aftershocks now. They weren't able to talk for long because there's no electricity."
Gurung, a teacher in Hong Kong, lived in Kathmandu for six years during his high school years and studied medicine there.
"I always feared something like this might happen as Kathmandu is a vulnerable place where the town planning is not very good."
Agence France-Presse, Reuters, Associated Press, Lana Lam


Search for bodies among the ruins in Kathmandu

Rescue workers and onlookers at the collapsed Darahara Tower, a key tourist attraction in the heart of Kathmandu's old quarter. Photo: AFP

Dharhara tower, as it was. Photo: AFP

Residents of Lalitpur, on the outskirts of the capital, stumble amid the ruins. The quake toppled buildings and opened gaping cracks in roads. Photo: AFP

Buildings collapse, more than 2,300 killed as 7.9 magnitude quake strikes Nepal

A man stuck in the rubble of a building destroyed by the quake, the most powerful to hit Nepal in more than eight decades. Photo: EPA

Rescuers pull a man from the rubble of a destroyed building after the earthquake hit. Photo: EPA

Injured people in Kathmandu get medical attention after the earthquake hit Nepal. Photo: AP

Volunteers help with rescue work at the site of a building that collapsed after the earthquake. Photo: AP

a family takes refuge in the street outside a school in Kathmandu after a the earthquake struck. Photo: Reuters 

This map from the US Geological Survey shows the area of the quake. Photo: EPA

Dust rises over the city during the quake. Photo: EPA

Nepalis inspect a damaged road in Kathmandu. Photo: Xinhua

A soldier searches for trapped people at a collapsed house in Shigatse, China's Tibet Autonomous Region. Photo: Xinhua

Volunteers clear rubble in Kathmandu's Durbar Square, a Unesco World Heritage Site that was severely damaged. Photo: AFP

Expeditions were cancelled on Mount Everest. Photo: Reuters

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Asia

South Asia

Historic tower among the treasures wiped out in the heart of Kathmandu


Residents of Kathmandu described scenes of panic and devastation on Saturday after the 7.8-magnitude earthquake razed houses and levelled centuries-old temples in Nepal's capital.


Search for bodies among the ruins in Kathmandu

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Historic tower among the treasures wiped out in the heart of Kathmandu

Historic tower among the treasures wiped out in the heart of Kathmandu