A powerful earthquake struck Nepal on Wednesday, killing at least six people and destroying several houses, the DPA quoted officials as saying. At least six others were injured in the magnitude 6.6 earthquake that hit the country's western region at around 2:12 a.m. (2012 GMT), according to Kalpana Shrestha, administrator of the affected Doti district. "Around a dozen homes were destroyed. We have also received reports of damages from other parts of the district," Shrestha said. Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba took to Twitter to express his condolences and said authorities had been instructed to carry out search, rescue and relief works. Tremors were felt across north India, including Delhi, Gurugram, Ghaziabad and Lucknow. The epicenter of the earthquake was in Nepal, about 90 km east-southeast of Pithoragarh in Uttarakhand, said the National Centre for Seismology (NCS). At least two earthquakes of 4.9 magnitude and 3.5 magnitude late Tuesday evening were experienced in the region, the NCS data showed. On Sunday, a 4.5 magnitude earthquake hit Uttarakhand with its epicenter 17 km east-southeast of Uttarkashi. The Wednesday quake brings to mind the devastating April 25, 2015 earthquake, which struck near the city of Kathmandu in Nepal. The 7.8 magnitude quake, which took place just before afternoon, killed over 9,000 people and thousands were injured. It also triggered deadly avalanches around Mount Everest. Meanwhile the Indian hill state of Uttarakhand has witnessed 700 minor earthquakes in the last decade, experts said. It is feared that the "big one" is round the corner. The earthquakes have been of less intensity (3 magnitude) in the last 10 years, according to a data collated by Doon-based Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology (WIHG). A 4.5 magnitude earthquake was felt in Tehri on Sunday. A massive earthquake is pending in the Central Seismic Gap (CSG), experts have noted. — Agencies
