25th April 2015. It was a normal day out in Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal. People were out in the streets as usual. Tourists were roaming around the Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Patan Durbar Square and other such landmarks of the city. Many locals were out for the weekend.
Every thing seemed to be well and pleasant in Nepal until a sudden loud noise was heard and the earth shuddered. Buildings were shaking, things were falling from their normal places and people ran out of their houses in panic. One of the most devastating earthquakes had shaken Nepal. The magnitude of this trembler was a massive 7.8 on the Richter scale.
The two minutes long earthquake changed the very face of Nepal and it was indeed a black day. Another black day in the history of Nepal after a long gap of 80 years. The most powerful natural calamity to strike Nepal since the 1934 Nepal-Bihar earthquake. Cries of women and children could be heard all across the small country.
Rubble and debris were seen all over the streets of Kathmandu. Many of the monuments and temples in Kathmandu Valley, including many UNESCO World Heritage Sites, were destroyed by the earthquake. Temples in Kathmandu, Patan, and Bhaktapur were reduced to nothing more than a pile of rubble.
The famous landmark of Kathmandu, the Dharahara tower a nine storey tall building collapsed and now only the base remains. A harsh symbol of the devastation caused on this day.
Suddenly the beautiful valley of Kathmandu turned into a cremation ground. Turning the city into a ghost town. Thousands of people have been left homeless. Villages have been wiped out. Tremors were felt across the region, with further loss of life in neighbouring India, Bangladesh andTibet. 20 mountaineers lost their lives at the base camp of Mount Everest alone.
Aftershocks occurred throughout Nepal with 15–20 minute intervals, with one shock reaching a magnitude of 6.7 on the richter scale on 26th April and another massive jolt on the 12th of May
