Western students safe in Nepal

Four Western Washington University students in Nepal are safe and well following the most recent earthquake there. The Western students, part of a Wildlands Studies group in Nepal, were hiking near the mountain Kala Patthar on an open, well-traveled trail and felt a somewhat mild version of Tuesday’s 7.3 magnitude earthquake. There were only a few houses nearby and those were not damaged in any way. Last night the group camped in a wide open space.

Nepal reported more than 40 deaths and over 1,000 injuries after the Tuesday quake. On April 25, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8 caused more than 8,000 deaths in Nepal. During that first earthquake, the Wildlands Studies group was outside the area of the worst earthquake damage and did not receive any injuries.

The group is scheduled to depart Nepal May 23 but in the wake of the second earthquake is considering whether to leave earlier.