A M7.4 earthquake has hit near Thame Valley at 12:50 local time today, Tuesday May 12th. We are getting messages from loved ones of extensive damage. No word yet on possible loss of life. Phone contact is difficult but some friends have managed to stay online.
There are mixed accounts on the news but according to preliminary reports this earthquake appears to have hit 68km west of Namche Bazaar, the market town at the foot of Thame Valley. This beautiful town is nestled into the mountain slope, like a steep amphitheatre and is about 8 kilometres from Thame. It's the center of Sherpa commerce in Upper Khumbu.
The USGS maps show that the epicentre for this earthquake is near Bigu in Dolakha district, but the BBC and other news outlets say it was centered near Namche or Everest Base Camp. Today's shake was followed closely by two aftershocks - measuring magnitude 5.6 and 6.3 - within 30 minutes and were felt as far away as Gujarat, India.
Links to follow:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-32701385
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/05/150512071622053.html
http://live.reuters.com/Event/Nepal_Earthquake_3?Page=2
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/may/12/nepal-hit-by-second-huge-earthquake
https://twitter.com/logcluster
http://logcluster.org/ops/nepal
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us20002ejl#general_summary