Tremors hit Nepal for second time within 12 hours; 4.5-magnitude earthquake in Bhojpur, Khotang districts

Kathmandu: A 4.5-magnitude earthquake shook the Eastern Nepal’s Bhojpur and its adjoining Khotang districts late Tuesday, the country’s seismological department said. The tremor was felt around 10.30 pm and its epicentre was in Bhojpur district, about 500 km east of Kathmandu, the National Seismological Department said on Wednesday. Tremor was also felt in neighbouring Khotang district, it added. This was not an aftershock of the great Gorkha earthquake of April 25, 2015, but a fresh one that occurs in the Himalayan region from time to time, the department said. This was the second quake that hit the Himalayan nation in less than 12 hours. On Tuesday, a mild termor of 3.3-magnitude was felt in and around Kathmandu metropolitan city at 11.26 am. Its epicentre was in the national capital’s Thapathali area. The department said that it was an aftershock of the Gorkha earthquake. Nepal was hit by a massive 7.8-magnitude earthquake in 2015 that left nearly, 9,000 people dead, 22,000 injured. Around 6,00,000 structures in Kathmandu and other nearby towns were either damaged or destroyed.