Number of Americans missing in Nepal rises: Families hunt for their loved ones as true scale of devastation from earthquake starts to emerge
- Three Americans who were on Mount Everest at the time have been confirmed dead
- Avalanches were triggered by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake that ripped through Nepal, India, China and Bangladesh
- Up to 3,800 people have died in the disaster across the Himalayas with scores still unaccounted for in the region
- Everest basecamp was buried by deadly avalanches that were sparked by the earthquake on Saturday morning
- Among mountaineers to have died is American Google executive Dan Fredinburg and Dr Marisa Eve Girawong
- Denver-born Tom Taplin, 61, was recording a documentary at the basecamp when the avalanche hit
- Around 3,000 Americans live in Nepal and as many as 4,000 visit the area during its current peak tourism season
- The earthquake is Nepal's worst natural disaster for 81 years while Everest has never seen so many die on one day
As many as 100 Americans are believed to be missing in the Himalayas as families across the world scramble to find information on their loved ones following Saturday's devastating earthquake.
The death toll across Nepal, China, India and Bangladesh has risen to 3,800. Nepalese officials have speculated that number could reach 10,000, while Care International, an aid agency, predicted it could reach 15,000.
At least 18 climbers, including three Americans, died after a series of avalanches also buried the Everest basecamp.
American Google executive Dan Fredinburg, 33, was the first confirmed fatality on the mountain. New Jersey-born Dr Marisa Eve Girawong, 29, was also killed when ice and rock crushed the 18,000-foot-altitude base camp where she worked as a medic for Madison Mountaineering.
A third American, Tom Taplin, 61, who owned TET Films & Photography, was making a documentary when the earthquake hit, NBC News reported. His wife Corey Fryer told the station he died 'doing what he loved'.
More than 100 Americans are named on a website for people still missing amid the tragedy, as their loved ones appeal for information. Around 3,000 American citizens live in Nepal, and between 3,000 and 4,000 Americans usually visit during the current peak tourism season, Ineke Stoneham of the U.S. Embassy Kathmandu told ABC News.
Fatalities: Dr Marisa Eve Girawong (left), 29, a medic on the base camp, and Google engineer Dan Fredinburg, 33, (right) were the first American identified fatalities in the Everest avalanche, which killed at least 18 climbers
Tragic: Dr Girawong (left) and Denver-born filmmaker Tom Taplin, 61, were killed when ice and rock crushed the 18,000-foot-altitude base camp where she worked as a medic for Madison Mountaineering. Taplin was making a film at the time of his death
Concerns: 19-year-old friends Bailey Meola, left, and Sydney Schumacher have not contacted their families since the earthquake
The three who died were buried by avalanches triggered by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Nepal slammed into a section of the mountaineering base camp, where hundreds were preparing to make their summit attempts. Hundreds are still missing and many are stuck waiting to be rescued.
In Nepal's capital, Kathmandu, the bodies of those buried alive have been laid in the street beneath white sheets. Their grieving relatives have prepared them for cremation, setting up make-shift funeral pyres in the city's open spaces.
Aftershocks on Sunday forced patients and their doctors to abandon buildings and seek treatment in the streets, fearing another tremor could cause a building to collapse.
Those who managed to get away from the epicenter were met with chaos at transport hubs, with flights being diverted away from Tribhuvan International Airport, and as many as 6,000 across the region suffered injuries.
Governments from around the world are now sending funds and much-needed supplies as the recovery effort continues.
The avalanche which hit Mount Everest started on Mount Kumori, a 23,000-foot-high mountain just a few miles from Everest, and gathered strength as it tore across the world's highest peak. Yet more avalanches were feared following the earthquake's aftershock which measured 6.9 on the Richter scale this morning as the first survivors were flown out off the mountain.
It is the worst natural disaster Nepal has seen in 81 years, and the highest death toll ever recorded on Everest. Before now, the mountain's deadliest year was 2014, when 16 people died in one day.
Relatives and friends of those who have not been seen or heard from are using social media and the Red Cross in a desperate bid to locate them. Google has also launched a 'person finder' website to help people reconnect with friends and loved ones in the aftermath of the earthquake.
Loss: Dan Fredinburg also died in the disaster. His former girlfriend, actress Sophia Bush, right, described him as 'an incredible friend'
Missing: Family members are appealing for information for Janice Campbell-Paul, left, and Dawn Lightfoot, 30, (right)
Searching: Jim Lane, left, has been reported missing, as has Aaron Lamar Goggans (right), a 32-year-old adventurer from Colorado
Phillip Eskander, (left), from Portage, Michigan and Kristina Tortora, from Long Island, New York (right) were also listed as missing
A photograph of Everest basecamp after the avalanche struck yesterday shows climbers carrying the injured in sleeping bags
Shock: The Everest Base Camp can be seen following the avalanche. Three Americans are among the people killed on the mountain
Flattened: Campers' equipment can be seen covered in snow and strewn across the mountain following the earthquake
Aftermath: Two men help clear debris after buildings collapsed in Bhaktapur, Nepal after the 7.8 earthquake hit Kathmandu
Escape: Two women find safe ground in front of a destroyed building 24 hours after the deadly earthquake hit Nepal
Emmanuel O'Kane from New York (left) has told family he is well but loved ones are still waiting to hear from Aram Schwartz, right
Relief: Mendy Losh (left, on the left) and father-of-four Danny Cole (left, on the right), from Crown Heights in New York, have let their families know they are safe, as have Charity and Ian Wright (pictured together right)
Among the Americans still missing are 19-year-olds Bailey Meola and Sydney Schumacher, both from Seattle, who have not contacted their families since the earthquake. Dawn Lightfoot, 30, from La Jolla, California, is also unaccounted for.
Andrew Lamar Goggans, a 32-year-old adventurer from Colorado Springs, is also missing, as is 62-year-old Beverly Brooks Brown from Biloxi, Mississippi, and 26-year-old Philadelphia man Benjamin Schneider, according to the database of missing people.
Lea Kennedy, from Daytona Beach, Florida, has also expressed fears for her brother, 35-year-old Stephen Kennedy, who is backpacking in Nepal. She said he usually stays in regular contact with his family through Facebook but they have yet to hear from him.
'With this happening, we should have heard from him by now, he would have definitely wanted to let his family know that he was safe,' she told My Fox Orlando.
Some, including Kat Heldman, Alexis Kanter, Mendy Losh and Danny Cole were able to eventually reach their families to reassure them they were safe as the chaos of the aftermath continued.
The database of missing people is being constantly updated as families add more names or indicate that the missing person has been found.
On Sunday the first groups of survivors were flown off Everest by aid helicopters. Two sherpas who survived the avalanches have since spoken of the horror.
'I was resting in my tent when the earthquake hit. I heard a big noise and the next thing I know I was swept away by the snow. I must have been swept almost 200 meters. I lost consciousness,' said Pemba Sherpa, 43. 'When I regained consciousness, I was in a tent surrounded by foreigners. I did not know what happened or where I was.'
The United States Geological Survey said the quake struck 81 kilometres (50 miles) northwest of Kathmandu at 06.11 GMT, with walls crumbling and families racing outside of their homes
Concern: A mother tends to her daughter at the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Kathmandu. Most of the patients have been moved outside to the courtyard, fearing aftershocks could damage the buildings
Damage: Cyclists pass a huge crack in the road created by the tremors on the outskirts of Kathmandu
Taking stock: A Nepalese girl takes out belongings from her damaged house in Bhaktapur on the outskirts of Kathmandu
Taking shetler: Tents have been set up outside of buildings in Kathmandu in a bid to avoid the impact of the aftershocks
Precautions: Patients and their attendants are seen being treated outside hospital after an aftershock hit the area on Sunday
Debris: A tourist makes his way through the debris of a temple after an earthquake in Kathmandu
Finding space: Tents are seen from an airplane window in an open field next to Tribhuwan International Airport
A cloud of snow and debris flew towards the basecamp killing up to 18 people yesterday in the deadliest day in the mountain's history
He said the toll on Everest was sure to rise: 'There are still many people who are still missing on the mountain. There were several tents buried by the snow, several blown away.'
Bhim Bahudar Khatri, a cook for the climbing team, said: 'I was cooking for my team in the meal tent when the earthquake hit. We all rushed out to the open and the next moment a huge wall of snow just piled on me.
'I managed to dig out of what could easily have been my grave. I wiggled and used my hands as claws to dig as much as I could. I was suffocating, I could not breathe. But I knew I had to survive.
'I dug a few more feet until I was out of the snow and could breathe. I looked around and saw the tents all torn, crushed and many people injured. I had lived, but lost many of my friends.'
Dr Girawong was the Level 1 base camp doctor for Seattle-based climbing firm Madison Mountaineering, with a focus on trauma.
Born in New Jersey, she studied at Rutgers University before specializing in mountaineering medication at the UK's University of Leicester and in the Scottish peaks. She completed her studies in trauma medicine at Chicago's John Stroger Hospital - one of the top emergency programs in the country.
As a mountain climber, she scaled Mt Washington and Mt Rainer.
Fredinburg and other Google executives were climbing with the Everest adventure team Jagged Globe. The rest of his team sustained non life-threatening injuries.
His job title was 'Google Adventurer'. He used to photograph the world's high peaks for Google Maps, and was also head of privacy for the firm's elusive invention factory Google X.
His former girlfriend actress Sophia Bush, who ended their one-year relationship last February, delivered the news in an emotional post on Instagram, which paid tribute to 'one of the great loves of my life' who was 'one of a kind'.
In a long statement, she said: 'There are no adequate words. Today I find myself attempting to pick up the pieces of my heart that have broken into such tiny shards, I'll likely never find them all.
'Today I, and so many of my loved ones, lost an incredible friend. Dan Fredinburg was one-of-a-kind. Fearless. Funny. A dancing robot who liked to ride dinosaurs and chase the sun and envision a better future for the world.'
The couple separated in February 2014 due to long distance despite friends' suspicions they might one day marry. But they stayed close.
Last April, before they had announced their split, Fredinburg narrowly survived another Mount Everest avalanche that killed 16 Sherpas - and Bush took to Twitter to assure her followers he was all right.
Bush tweeted: 'For all concerned, @danfredinburg & team are safe at Camp 1 on #Everest after the avalanche. Please keep the Sherpas in your prayers.'
Fredinburg's death was first confirmed by his younger sister Megan, who posted a picture of her brother climbing a mountain to his Instagram account with an explanatory caption.
She wrote: 'This is Dan's little sister Megan. I regret to inform all who loved him that during the avalanche on Everest early this morning our Dan suffered from a major head injury and didn't make it. We appreciate all of the love that has been sent our way thus far and know his soul and his spirit will live on in so many of us. All our love and thanks to those who shared this life with our favorite hilarious strong willed man. He was and is everything to us. Thank you.'
Ashleigh Stumler from Charlotte, North Carolina, was on Everest when the earthquake struck. She told WSOCTV she thought she was dizzy and grabbed onto a tree as the ground shook.
She has since been able to get in touch with her parents back home via Facebook and FaceTime and is looking to get away from the heart of the damage.
One of the destroyed buildings was the historic Dharahara Tower. The tower was a 203-foot structure built in 1832, commissioned by Prime Minister Bhimsen Thapa to act as a military watchtower.
Officials would stand at the top of the tower to sound a bugle at the start of important events.
It was not open to the public until 2005, when visitors were finally allowed to climb the 213 steps. The eighth-floor balcony had a circular balcony overlooking the Kathmandu valley.
Sixty people were found in the wreckage when it collapsed on Saturday.
Destroyed: Maju Deval, a Shiva temple built in 1609 in Kathmandu, Nepal, pictured (left) last year, and (right) following the earthquake
A child receives treatment outside the emergency ward of Bir hospital in Kathmandu, Nepal
A man buried up to his shoulders in rubble is rescued from the remains of a destroyed building in Kathmandu after the earthquake
People carry a woman from the rubble of a destroyed building while locals and rescue teams continue to search for more survivors
Officials estimated that at least 1,000 climbers had been at basecamp or on Everest when the earthquake struck.
Jagged Globe, the team with which Fredinburg was climbing, released a statement on Saturday evening confirming his death and announcing the other climbers had survived with injuries:
'It is with the greatest sorrow that we report the death of one of our Everest team members, Daniel Fredinburg. Two other team members have non-life threatening injuries, as a result of the avalanche that struck base camp during the earthquake and its aftershocks. They are being looked after in base camp. All Sherpas and other team members are uninjured and are safe in base camp or in Gorak Shep, a nearby cluster of tea houses and lodges.'
It continued: 'Our thoughts and prayers go out to Dan’s family and friends whilst we pray too for all those who have lost their lives in one of the greatest tragedies ever to hit this Himalayan nation.'
April is one of the most popular times to scale Everest, before rain and clouds cloak the peak at the end of May.
Mohan Krishna Sapkota, joint secretary in the Nepalese tourism ministry, said the government was struggling to assess the damage on Everest because of poor phone coverage.
'The trekkers are scattered all around the basecamp and some had even trekked further up,' Sapkota said. 'It is almost impossible to get in touch with anyone.'
Choti Sherpa, who works at the Everest Summiteers Association, said she had been unable to call her family and colleagues on the mountain.
'Everyone is trying to contact each other, but we can't,' she said. 'We are all very worried.'
Reports are emerging that seismology experts had predicted the possibility of an imminent devastating earthquake and began laying out action plans a week ago.
'It was sort of a nightmare waiting to happen,' said seismologist James Jackson, head of the earth sciences department at the Cambridge University. 'Physically and geologically what happened is exactly what we thought would happen.
'I was walking through that very area where that earthquake was and I thought at the very time that the area was heading for trouble,' said Mr Jackson, lead scientist for Earthquakes Without Frontiers, a group that tries to help Asian cities prepare for disasters.
Tweeting from the mountain, Daniel Mazur from the UK wrote: 'Aftershock @ 1pm! Horrible here in camp 1. Avalanches on 3 sides. C1 a tiny island. We worry about icefall team below.. Alive?'
Chris Harling, who is leader of the Adventure Peaks Everest North Ridge 2015 Expedition, was also on the mountain when the avalanche struck.
Posting on Facebook, he wrote: 'Here in base camp we initially felt minor tremors, then the ground began to feel like jelly as waves passed through the rocks beneath our feet.
'Climbers appeared from tents all over camp to try to start to comprehend what they were feeling.
'As the movement became more violent I expected the loose and precarious rocky slopes above the camp area to start shedding huge boulders - it was extremely alarming wondering if we were to be buried by rockfall.
'Sure enough, an area of steep cliffs did break off sending car sized boulders hurtling down only a few hundred metres from our tents. We are still feeling aftershocks hours later.'
He added: 'Our thoughts are with any local staff working on Everest who may have been affected by losses in today's quake.'
Climber Alex Gavan from Romania tweeted: 'Everest basecamp huge earthquake then huge avalanche from Pumori. Running for life from my tent. Unhurt. Many, many people up the mountain.
'Huge disaster. Helped searched and rescued victims through huge debris area. Many dead. Much more badly injured. More to die if not heli asap.'
A senior mountaineering guide, Ang Tshering, of the Nepal Mountaineering Association, said the avalanche occurred between the Khumbu Icefall, a rugged area of collapsed ice and snow, and the basecamp where most climbing expeditions have their main camps.
Men carry an injured person through the streets of Kathmandu, Nepal after a 7.8 magnitude earthquake caused massive damage in the city
Locals rescue a man from the the rubble of a destroyed building, as they work to find and rescue any survivors of the disaster
People search for survivors stuck under the rubble of a destroyed building, after the earthquake caused serious damage in the capital
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Norwegian climber Teodor Glomnes Johansen, who was at basecamp, told a newspaper in Norway they are working to save lives.
'We carry out severely injured people. This is pretty tough and heavy. We do not know whether there will be more avalanches,' Mr Glomnes Johansen told Norway's VG newspaper.
'All those who are unharmed organise help with the rescue efforts. Men, women and Sherpas are working side-by-side. The job right now is to assist the doctors in the camp here.'
Chinese media has reported that a Chinese climber and two Sherpa guides were among the dead.
Climber Robin Trygg told Swedish news agency TT his Sherpa guides had been in radio contact with other guides on Everest and they reported an avalanche there hitting as many as 80 people.
'We were sitting in the tent and drinking tea when the earth, all of a sudden, began shaking. We didn't understand what happened,' he told the news agency.
Homes, businesses and landmarks were destroyed when the severe earthquake struck Kathmandu and the densely-populated surrounding areas at noon local time, officials said.
Rescue teams continue to search for survivors who are feared to be trapped under the rubble. Home Ministry official Laxmi Dhakal warned the death toll is almost certain to rise.
If you are searching for someone or have information about a person's whereabouts, you can visit www.google.org/personfinder/2015-nepal-earthquake.
The International Committee of the Red Cross has also compiled a list of those who have been reported missing by family members at http://familylinks.icrc.org/nepal-earthquake/en/Pages/search-persons.aspx
HUNDREDS OF CLIMBERS STRANDED ON MOUNT EVEREST AWAITING HELICOPTER RESCUE MISSIONS
More than 700 climbers are stranded on Mount Everest awaiting helicopters after the avalanche blocked off all access points.
Between 17 and 19 people were killed when ice and rock crushed the base camp on Saturday.
On Sunday morning, a fleet of six helicopters managed to lift 22 of the most injured climbers and sherpas to Kathmandu for treatment.
But bad weather, continued aftershocks, and poor communication has scuppered subsequent trips, leaving hundreds stranded.
Retrieval: A rescue helicopter prepares to land and airlift the injured from Everest Base Camp on Sunday. Survivors feared that many of those hurt would not make it
Devastating: Climbers and Sherpas were buried under rock and ice at the mountain's 18,000-foot-high base camp (pictured)
Historic: It is the highest death toll ever recorded on the mountain, which has never seen more than 16 annual fatalities
One expedition instructor, Daniel Mazur, managed to tweet an update from the mountains at midday Eastern Time.
He informed his followers a route had been found but it is badly damaged. Most of the sherpas assisting their climb, he said, have fled to the nearby village of Namche.
Another, Adrian Ballinger, tweeted from the Tibetan side of the Himalayas.
He said the survivors have shared 'shots of blessed whiskey, hugs and smiles' as they await rescue.
American cardiologist Ellen Gallant has been providing medical assistance to the injured climbers that missed the helicopter.
She told AFP how, despite their efforts, one young Nepali man died due to lack of treatment.
‘Of the nine patients, one of them died last night - a 25-year-old sherpa. His blood pressure had fallen - there was nothing we could do.
‘When you go to medical school, you learn to focus on the task at hand. But now that things have settled down, it's hit me hard. That young man... shouldn't have to die.’
Desperate relatives have posted pictures and descriptions of loved ones online in the hope they can be found as the death toll continues to grow.
Video footage shows how a group of climbers ran for their lives as the Nepal earthquake hit at Everest Base Camp
Video footage shows climbers emerging from their tents to find the Everest Base Camp flattened
Rescuers in Nepal are searching frantically for survivors of the huge earthquake, which is believed to have killed 2,500
Climbers ran for their lives and then took refuge in their tents and waited for the cloud of snow to pass
Avalanche: Terrifying avalanche pictured from basecamp on Mount Everest caused by the earthquake today
The avalanche was caused by a powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake which struck Nepal and has claimed the lives of 2,500 people
Danish climber Carsten Lillelund Pedersen hid behind these rocks when the avalanche caught up with him at basecamp
Everest basecamp: At least 18 people have died and many have been injured in the avalanche
The avalanche started on the nearby 23,000-foot Mount Kimori, which sent ice and rock speeding down the mountain towards the base camp.
Aftershocks of around 6 magnitude have continued to pile snow onto the remaining trails, meaning it is no longer safe to attempt a climb down.
Amateur video has been released showing the moment a huge wall of snow and debris hurtled towards Everest Base Camp, before it flattened part of the camp in the Himalayas yesterday.
Climber Jost Kobusch, who worked in the Special Forces in the German Mountain Army, took the video and said he felt the ground shaking and saw people sprinting away from the cloud of snow.
The video of the avalanche, which has been viewed almost 1,000 times of YouTube, shows climbers taking refuge in their tents.
One climber can be heard saying: 'The ground is shaking.'
The camera then pans round just as the massive wall of snow starts speeding towards them.
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