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Massive earthquake near Katmandu


Justme

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I believe that is where Derick lived for a couple of years. AP is reporting over 800 deaths so far.

Just read the story on BBC. Holy crap. 876 people so far, and likely to rise. And while it's not as important as the human lives lost, it looks like a lot of very culturally significant buildings and monuments were damaged or destroyed. Just a terrible situation all around.

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Yes it's where Derick lived. They are saying it's has caused avalanches on Mt Everest as well

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I wonder if Derick and other like-minded people will take this "opportunity" to go there and tell the Nepalese people that this wouldn't have happened if they'd only loved Jesus. But! They can prevent it from happening again if they believe in the right god and love Jesus with all their hearts and build churches to replace their heathen temples. A "field ripe for harvesting" might be too tempting to these assholes.

Quake info:

Main quake thread on Reddit: http://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comme ... l_tremors/

The Earthquake Guy's live thread about the quake on Reddit: http://www.reddit.com/live/usqod2db8ogh

USGS: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/#

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Yes it's where Derick lived. They are saying it's has caused avalanches on Mt Everest as well

Ugg- isn't this prime summiting season?

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I lived in Japan for several years and it still feels like my second home. I was living back in the US when the earthquake and nuclear disaster happened in Japan. I was devastated. I still am because that radiation will always be there, in the metal swing sets, in the ground, in the water. My heart really hurts for the Japanese. And I'm glad I came back to the US before it happened. And I feel guilty for feeling that way.

I'm sure Derick feels similarly.

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Ugg- isn't this prime summiting season?

Yes, I believe so! The epicenter was between Pokhara and Kathmandu. K has a population of one million, and P is where many Himalayan trekking groups start out from, as well as being a tourist destination in its own right. I am anticipating some really awful stories out of this one as the days go by. Gawd.

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Ugg- isn't this prime summiting season?

BBC quoted a guy who was climbing Everest and escaped the worst of it -- he said that there were many people on the mountain and he was lucky to escape with his life.

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BBC quoted a guy who was climbing Everest and escaped the worst of it -- he said that there were many people on the mountain and he was lucky to escape with his life.

There were more than 300 people at the base camp alone.

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There were more than 300 people at the base camp alone.

Terrifying. Mt Everest is one of the safest of the eight-thousanders and while I don't want to diminish the deaths of all the people in cities and towns, the death of climbers in avalanches always hits me harder.

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So sad after the Sherpa disaster last year these people need a break. My husband's psychiatrist is there visiting family in Kathmandu and I pray she and her family are well. She is a very special person in our lives.

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I mean no disrespect at all, but I wonder if the Sherpa community will interpret two years' back-to-back disasters on Everest as a sign to stop providing support for elite mountaineering? It would have a huge impact if so - not only on the commercial expeditions, but on the Sherpa families who depend on the money made during climbing season.

As for the international community - many say that Base Camp has been a mess for years, and ascents are littered with garbage such as oxygen tanks and, famously, even the occasional frozen body. It is too dangerous at those altitudes to do much other than focus on one's own ascent/descent.

I'm not an expert, but I've read a lot about the Himalayas and have been to Nepal. I think I understand the romanticism and the pull of extreme endeavors. But perhaps it's time to re-think all this? I have this secret wish that this earthquake shook things up enough so that Everest sunk a few feet and Is no longer the tallest!

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I feel so badly for those people...I don't know their disaster infrastructure but there are so many impoverished and isolated communities that may not receive the rescue efforts they need soon enough.

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I mean no disrespect at all, but I wonder if the Sherpa community will interpret two years' back-to-back disasters on Everest as a sign to stop providing support for elite mountaineering? It would have a huge impact if so - not only on the commercial expeditions, but on the Sherpa families who depend on the money made during climbing season.

As for the international community - many say that Base Camp has been a mess for years, and ascents are littered with garbage such as oxygen tanks and, famously, even the occasional frozen body. It is too dangerous at those altitudes to do much other than focus on one's own ascent/descent.

I'm not an expert, but I've read a lot about the Himalayas and have been to Nepal. I think I understand the romanticism and the pull of extreme endeavors. But perhaps it's time to re-think all this? I have this secret wish that this earthquake shook things up enough so that Everest sunk a few feet and Is no longer the tallest!

That would leave K2 as the tallest, and it is way more dangerous than Everest! I watched The Summit on Netflix, and it was fascinating but to me it just seems so stupid to risk your life like that. It follows a climbing expedition in which 11 people died. Obviously not every expedition is that bad, but on average 1 person dies on K2 for every 4 who summit. (Annapurna is even worse, at 32%.) Everest is relatively safe in comparison.

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That would leave K2 as the tallest, and it is way more dangerous than Everest! I watched The Summit on Netflix, and it was fascinating but to me it just seems so stupid to risk your life like that. It follows a climbing expedition in which 11 people died. Obviously not every expedition is that bad, but on average 1 person dies on K2 for every 4 who summit. (Annapurna is even worse, at 32%.) Everest is relatively safe in comparison.

Wow, those odds are absolutely nuts!!

This earthquake will have a profound effect on Nepal, and I would like to think that it will slow the activity on Everest to saner levels - but there will always be people who want to stand on the roof of the world, no matter what.

On a bright note, I heard today that some acquaintances in Kathmandu are safe. :)

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K2 is a LOT more technical than Everest. I'd hope that most people would gravitate toward a different one of the 7 summits. K2 has a 22 percent death rate, while Everest has 4%. The low percentage had more to do with the sheer number of people climbing it, though. I just don't know what to think about the issues surrounding Everest before this year's Earthquakes. I mean, you have the Sherpas who enjoy their jobs and make a lot of money as porters and guides. Then you have the trash, which is/was being dealt with, somewhat. IIRC there was an expedition this year with the specific intent to pick up non biodegradable trash (so not dead people).

And then, from a mountaineering perspective, you have an increasingly expensive expedition, well out of the price range of most people (62K) which allows only the very dedicated people with sponsors and the very rich. The very rich people are not always experienced enough for the challenge and yet they get up there with the help of so many people who risk their lives and aren't even named. When you look at the list of the dead from last year's expeditions, there are a bunch of "name unknown, Sherpa"

Anyway, so I really just want to bitch, I think.

Also K2:The Summit was pretty good and anyone with an interest in climbing should watch it on Netflix.

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