As rescuers dig more dead bodies from earthquake-ravaged area in Nepal, Prime Minister Sushil Koirala hints that the death toll from the April 25 magnitude-7.9 tremor could rise to 10,000 from the current 5,000 plus.

Those injured have already exceeded 10,000, while the homeless are in the thousands.

Like Us on Facebook

The destruction has been that extensive that four days after the temblor, there are remote villages and towns that have not been reached by rescue teams and relief goods, decreasing the chance of digging out survivors from the rubble.

Many of these remote areas are in mountainous regions that are hard to reach. Koirola admits that while the Nepali government is doing all it could to rescue citizens still trapped in collapsed structures and provide relief for those who have been rescued or whose homes were destroyed, "It is a challenge and a very difficult hour for Nepal," RTE.ie quotes him.

Geoff Pinnock, emergencies officer of the World Food Program, said it would take time for food and other supplies to reach Nepalis who survived in faraway areas because many of these places have been cut off by landslides.

The Program has five cargo trucks full of rice, cooking oil and sugar in an area beneath the Himalayas. It is waiting for choppers to ferry these supplies to remote places.

He said the agency would soon deliver high-energy food biscuits to areas that do not have sufficient water for cooking. Meanwhile, first aid supplies have reached the Dhading district, east of Gorhka, reports Fox.

The United Nations estimate about 8 million Nepali are affected by the earthquake, while 1.4 million need food. International assistance has been pouring in, from neighbors China and India, to the U.S. and from other nations.  Despite the outpouring of assistance and support, the prime minister still sought more tents and medicines from foreign donors.

The quake wiped out entire villages and completely destroyed communities near the epicenter, said the chief executive of UK's Disasters Emergency Committee. One such village is Ghodatabela in Rasuwa district, a popular area for trekking, located north of capital city Katmandu.

TagsNepal, earthquake