NEPAL QUAKE DEATH TOLL CLIMBS TO 1,910

People clear rubble in Kathmandu's Durbar Square, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that was severely damaged by an earthquake on April 25, 2015. (AFP PHOTO / PRAKASH MATHEMA) — People clear rubble in Kathmandu’s Durbar Square, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that was severely damaged by an earthquake on April 25, 2015. (AFP PHOTO / PRAKASH MATHEMA)

Kathmandu, Nepal, 7 Rajab 1436/26 April 2015 (MINA) – A Nepal police official says at least 1,910 people have been killed, including at least 721 in Kathmandu, in the immense weekend earthquake centered outside of the capital of the Himalayan nation.

Deputy Inspector General of Police Komal Singh Bam says the death toll is expected to climb, Associated Press quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

The quake measuring 7.9 is the strongest to hit the country in 81 years.

The quake struck 81 kilometers (50 miles) northwest of Kathmandu at 0611 GMT, with walls crumbling and families racing outside of their homes, Al Arbiya report.

“The walls of houses have collapsed around me onto the road. All the families are outside in their yards huddled together. The tremors are still going on,” an AFP reporter said in Kathmandu.

Initially measured at 7.5 magnitude, the quake was later adjusted to 7.9, with a depth of 15 kilometers, the USGS said. It hit 68 kilometers east of the tourist town of Pokhara.

Media reports said the quake tremors lasted between 30 seconds and two minutes and were felt across the across the border in India, including in the capital New Delhi.

“We are in the process of finding more information and are working to reach out to those affected, both at home and in Nepal,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a tweet. (T/P001/R04)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)