Nature seems to be against us: rain hampers Nepal rescue teams
By Gopal Sharma KATHMANDU (Reuters) – Rescue teams toiled in pouring rain on Thursday in the debris left by last week's devastating earthquake in Nepal, but officials said the chance of finding any more survivors was bleak as the death toll neared 5,500.While rescue teams were out in the capital Kathmandu despite the rain, helicopters could not fly to the worst-hit areas in the countryside of the impoverished Himalayan nation."There may not be any more survivors," said Rameshwor Dandal, chief of the disaster management center at Nepal's home ministry. An official from Nepal's home ministry said the number of confirmed deaths from Saturday's 7.8 magnitude earthquake had risen to 5,489 by Thursday morning. It has said eight million people have been affected, with at least two million in need of tents, water, food and medicines over the next three months.Dandal said foreign rescue teams had told him that their work is almost done because there is little chance of finding any survivors.
