South Asian Quake Update

MSNBC is reporting that the death toll from the South Asian earthquake has surpassed 79,000 and is expected to rise even further. The dramatic upwards revisions in the death toll comes as a result of officials getting into the more remote areas hit by the quake. It takes time to find these remote areas, and by that time, people who were trapped in the rubble are beyond saving.

Asif Iqbal Daudzai, information minister for the North West Frontier Province, told The Associated Press that 37,958 people died in the province and at least 23,172 were injured, the vast majority of them in Mansehra district. He said the figures were based on reports from local government and hospital officials in the area.

In addition, 40,000 people died in Pakistani-held Kashmir, which is not part of the North West Frontier Province. India has reported 1,360 deaths in the part of Kashmir that it controls.

Also, be sure to check out South Asia Quake Help blog, which was set up by the folks who arranged the original South Asia Quake and Tsunami Page.

Technorati: earthquake, pakistan, india.