Nepal Earthquake Update: Google Executive Killed In Avalanche, India Evacuates Citizens, Aid Groups Warn Of Hardship Ahead

UPDATE 01:31 a.m. EDT: An Nepalese police official says that the death toll from the earthquake that struck the country Satruday has risen to at least 1,910, including 721 in Kathmandu, according to the Associated Press.

UPDATE 9:45 p.m. EDT: The Home Ministry reported the death toll from Nepal's earthquake has jumped to 1,805, Reuters reported. A Home Ministry official said 4,718 were injured in the worst quake to hit the area in 81 years.

Original post:

Dan Fredinburg, a Google executive who was part of a climbing expedition, died of head injuries suffered in an avalanche on Mount Everest sparked by the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck Nepal Saturday, his sister said in a message posted to Instagram. Jagged Globe, the British mountaineering company with which Fredinburg had been climbing, confirmed his death in a statement.

Fredinburg is one of more than 1,500 people killed as a result of the earthquake, the worst Nepal has seen in more than 80 years. The earthquake triggered an avalanche that buried parts of Everest Base Camp, killing at least 13, a number that is likely to increase as the search for survivors continues.

In the aftermath of the deadly quake, some countries moved quickly to evacuate their citizens from Nepal. India airlifted more than 150 of its citizens in two military aircraft, bringing them to Delhi. Vikas Swarup, the spokesman for India's Ministry of External Affairs, said on Twitter a third aircraft carrying 160 people had left Kathmandu and a fourth plane, also loaded with about 160 people, was expected to depart Kathmandu shortly.

The White House issued a statement expressing "deep condolences" to victims of the quake and pledging $1 million in disaster relief assistance. A team of disaster response experts also was deployed. "The United States ... stands ready to assist the government and people of Nepal and the region further in this time of need," the statement said.

Meanwhile, aid organizations called for donations to relief effort to provide critical supplies such as food, water and shelter for survivors. The United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF, said 40 percent of Nepal's population is made up of children. David Morley, the president of UNICEF Canada, said the extent of the earthquake's devastation is unclear because communications are down. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said local hospitals are "stretched to capacity" and damaged roads are hindering access to rural areas near the earthquake's epicenter.

"We anticipate that there will be considerable destruction and loss of life," said Jagan Cahapgain, the director for the organization's Asia Pacific region. The Red Cross said Nepal's National Society for Earthquake Technology had previously predicted a major earthquake could kill more than 100,000 people in Nepal.