Eight killed as quake strikes Bihar

Patna May 12: At least eight people, including three children, were killed and nearly two dozen people were injured when a massive earthquake caused walls to collapse in parts of Bihar on Tuesday, officials said. The 7.3 magnitude earthquake's epicentre was in Kodari, Nepal and its effect was felt across north India, including Bihar. People in Patna, Darbhanga, Purnea, Kishanganj, Madhubani, Jehanabad and Aurangabad felt the tremors for over a minute. "People across Bihar felt the tremors," Patna Met Office director A.K. Sen said. According to state disaster management department officials here, there were reports of cracks in several houses in Jehanabad, Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur, Patna, Gaya, and Raxaul in East Champaran district. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has called a meeting of the state disaster management department and directed officials concerned to assess the damage caused by the quake.