Nepal Quake: Teams Clear Landslide Areas As They Shift From Search And Rescue To Relief Ops

Following the powerful earthquake in Nepal, authorities have started to clear landslide areas as they already shifted from search and rescue operations to relief efforts.

This was done to provide the needs of the victims of the earthquake.

(Photo : Getty Images/Prabin RANABHAT)

Authorities said that the earthquake on Friday had claimed the lives of at least 157 individuals. Of the total number, 105 people were from Jajarkot and 52 people from West Rukum.

On the other hand, more than 106 individuals were hurt in Jajarkot and 86 in West Rukum.

Assets Deployed For Relief Ops

So far, security forces have been deployed on foot to conduct relief operations.

Furthermore, helicopters and small government planes that were able to maneuver the mountainous region have also been deployed into action to assist with search and rescue operations.

These air assets will also assist in ferrying the wounded victims to hospitals and medical facilities.

Meanwhile, in some affected areas, rescue and search teams already started clearing the landslides caused by the earthquake in order to open road access.

Officials bared that the Minister of Health and Population has vowed that the government will provide free treatment to those injured in the earthquake in Jajarkot and Rukum.

The government has also sent a team of 41 health workers, including specialist doctors, to treat those injured patients in the earthquake-affected districts of Jajarkot and Rukum West.

Moreover, the Minister of Health and Population has discussed the health sector's response with the World Health Organization as well as with other partner groups.

The Nepal Medical Association has said that doctors from Dang, Surkhet, and Jumla branches have been deployed to rescue the citizens affected by the earthquake in Jajarkot and Rukum.

The UNICEF, for its part, also mobilized assistance for the victims, especially for children who are mostly at risk in the natural disaster.

Read Also: 8 Most Disastrous and Deadliest Earthquakes From the Last Decade

Crushed By Debris

Officials said that most of those killed were crushed by debris when their houses - usually made by stacking rocks and logs - crumbled and were eventually destroyed under the force of the tremblor on midnight of Friday.

Rescue operations have been quite challenging as the teams were doubling their time to provide assistance to the victims.

Rescuers noted that many of the mountainous villages could only be reached by foot. They stressed that roads were also blocked by landslides triggered by the earthquake.

It can also be observed that soldiers were trying to clear the blocked roads.

Authorities said that the death toll is still expected to increase as communications were still down and cut off in many places.

Meanwhile, at the regional hospital in the city of Nepalgunj, more than 100 beds were made available and teams of doctors stood by to help those injured patients.

The earthquake, which struck when most of the victims were already asleep in their homes, was also felt in India's capital, New Delhi, which is more than 800 kilometers (500 miles) away.

Authorities said that earthquakes are common in mountainous Nepal.

To recall, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck in 2015 and killed some 9,000 people. The powerful earthquake also damaged about one million structures.

Related Article: At least 150 Killed, Hundreds Hurt In Nepal's Deadliest Quake