Two earthquakes strike Nepal, sending tremors through region

Kathmandu, The Gulf Observer: Two earthquakes struck northwestern Nepal on Tuesday, sending tremors through the region, the country’s earthquake monitoring center said.

Several houses were reportedly damaged in Bajhang district but there were no immediate reports of any casualties, the district’s chief administrator Narayan Pandey said.

A key highway connecting the district to neighboring areas was blocked by a landslide triggered by the earthquake, he said, adding it was difficult to send machinery to clear the path due to aftershocks.

One man was slightly hurt after a water tank fell off the roof of his house and he was taken to a hospital for treatment.

Most of the houses in the sparsely populated mountainous region are one or two stories, and there are no big buildings.

Nepal’s National Earthquake Monitoring & Research Center said the epicenter for both quakes, with initial magnitudes measuring 5.3 followed by 6.3, was Bajhang district in northwestern Nepal, close to the Indian border.

Tremors were also felt in the Indian capital, New Delhi.