Posted on 04/25/2015 2:50:24 AM PDT by topher
BREAKING NEWS – At least 71 people died after a powerful magnitude-7.9 earthquake shook Nepal’s capital and the densely populated Kathmandu Valley around noon Saturday, Nepal's Home Ministry says.
Sky News also reports that at least 50 people are trapped underneath rubble of the city’s iconic Dharahara Tower, one of Kathmandu’s landmarks built by Nepal’s royal rulers in the 1800s and a UNESCO-recognized historical monument.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Thanks for info.
Prayers for all those killed and their surviving families.
See any resemblance in their behavior...same mindset...
Curious if that is Bhaktapur. I have heard from many in Kathmandu who have said many of the newer buildings have withstood better than they initially feared.
The buildings surrounding Swayambunath were destroyed but Swayambunath (the central Stupa) itself appears to be largely intact. Hopefully that survives. It is always one of my favorite places to visit to offer prayers before each trek. The view from the top are like nothing in the Kathmandu Valley.
In the 1957 Mexican earthquake, the immediate damage was relatively minor in Mexico City, under 200 killed, mostly in an apartment which collapsed due to faulty construction with inferior materials. Big scandal that one since the Mexican entertainer Cantinflas was somehow involved. Also the gold statue to victory fell off its column. Discovered most of the gold was on the surface, didn’t know who had stolen the rest. Some major skyscrapers had cracks up the side and would need to be torn down. The Social Security building across from where I lived had cracked in 3 places, but was otherwise restorable. The crack lines were planned for just such an event and they served their purpose well.
A few years later I took a minibus from El Salvador to Nicaragua. The road was adequate, but we stopped for breakfast in a tiny village. The stop had open vertical pole sides and corrugated tin sheets on top. The cooking area was a raised stone or brick platform with a flat sheet of metal on top. There were 12 of us on the bus, the cook had 5 eggs. I had been sick the day before. The other passengers kindly agreed I should have 2 eggs. Travel can be so educational. It is going to be a real challenge to evacuate 300,000 tourists. Fortunately, at least some of them will have had some third world experience. Some may even stay to help. Even in this country one should have at least a 3 day supply of water and food for emergencies. After 9/11 I make it a point to have a week of water and 3 months of food, plus bleach or iodine for sterilizing water without boiling it.
For me, that should be the focus of prayer -- getting souls to heaven. We should pray for charity, but also hope, and that people have faith.
My point is that those that die might be lost forever. I pray that souls end up in the book of LIFE. A person trapped in rubble and lay dying has a chance to ask God for forgiveness. If they die, they may go to heaven, and may not have much time in the Catholic concept of "Purgatory". The Bible refers to the Book of Life.
BUT I DO NOT WANT PEOPLE TO SUFFER.
The children of Fatima (Portugal) suffered greatly (Francisco and Jacinto) before they died, but went to heaven.
They were happy to face death because for them DEATH it was a way to enter HEAVEN immediately after death.
Remember the story of the man lowered on a mat to Jesus in the Gospel.
In the Gospel, the man lowered on the stretcher, Jesus forgave the man his sins. He did not immediately cure him.
When people questioned if Jesus could "forgive sins", Jesus told the man to pick up his mat, and "walk".
The point being that getting to heaven is the most important thing. We will all die, and hopefully in a state of grace.
When something like this happens, people have a chance "to convert".
Additionally, Christian organizations will render aid (a chance to spread the Christian message).
Mother Teresa of Calcutta (and her sisters) converted many not by promoting the gospel, but showing charity, and "living the Gospel."
THank you soooo much!
...and this last 6.7 quake shook three more avalanches.
Oh, God. That would scare the HELL out of me if I was there (literally).
Yea...the guy tweeting from the camp site was pretty scared too. I don’t think I’d want to know what a wall of snow and boulders coming at me would be like....the guy thought for sure he was a goner.
Welcome!
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