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Facts about Nepal Earthquake

A strong (7.8) earthquake hit Nepal in the area near Barpak, a mountain village between capital Kathmandu and tourist town Pokhara. The earthquake was followed by many powerful aftershocks and a very powerful one (6.7) hit Nepal on Sunday April 26.

The earthquakes caused extensive damage to buildings and thousands of deaths and injuries and was even felt in Pakistan, India and Bangladesh.

Many (historic) buildings collapsed, temples have been ruined, roads destroyed. Nearly 8000 deaths in Nepal and tens of deaths in India & Tibet. The quake was followed by more than 430 aftershocks and another huge earthquake (6.8) on May 12.

Despite the incredulous disbelief flickering across the faces of family and friends, I would not be dissuaded from my holiday plans to climb Damavand in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Had I listened to a couple of the more popular media-influenced ‘facts,’ I would have been frightened off by cloak-and-dagger tales of a hostile, ‘anti-west’ country; ‘the axis of evil’ where men with stones