The quake struck in the early hours of Wednesday when all families would have been at home and asleep. Its epicentre was located close to a national park in the sparsely populated Doti district, 430 km (270 miles) west of Nepal's capital, Kathmandu.
The National Centre for Seismology has said that Nepal first registered an earthquake at 8.52 pm on Tuesday of 4.9 magnitude. This was followed 3.5 magnitude at 9.41 pm. The third earthquake of 6.3 magnitude hit the country at 1.57 am on Wednesday.
Nepal woke up to immense destruction, loss and damage as the series of earthquakes destroyed houses in Doti district of Nepal and claimed six lives. A CCTV camera in one of the market places in Nepal captured the earthquake.
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Local television news channels showed rescuers clearing the rubble in the search for casualties and survivors, while women looked on, sitting in the open with babies wrapped in blankets to shield them from the cold.
Nepal is still rebuilding after two major earthquakes in 2015 killed almost 9,000 people, destroyed whole towns and centuries-old temples, delivering a $6 billion blow to the economy.
Earthquakes are common in mountainous Nepal, which is home to the tallest mountain. A 7.8 magnitude earthquake in 2015 killed some 9,000 people and damaged around 1 million structures.
Prime minister of Nepal Sher Bahadur Deuba expressed his condolences to the families who have lost their loved ones in the earthquake. He tweeted in Nepali, “Expressing my heartfelt condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in the earthquake, which was centered in the Khaptad region of Far West. Also, I have instructed the relevant agencies to arrange immediate and appropriate treatment for the injured and the victims in the relief and rescue in the affected areas."
The severe jolts that rocked Nepal were also felt some 536 km to the southwest, residents of the Indian capital, New Delhi, were shaken awake by the power of the 5.6 magnitude tremblor.
