The United States will send a disaster response team to Nepal and has authorized an initial $1 million in aid after a major earthquake killed hundreds in the mountainous Asian nation, U.S. aid officials said on Saturday.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) said in a tweet it was working with the Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) to launch a team and described the funding as an initial amount "to address immediate needs."
On its Twitter account, the OFDA said it was monitoring the situation and remained on standby.
Fears were growing of a humanitarian disaster in the impoverished Himalayan nation of 28 million after the magnitude 7.9 quake. An overwhelmed government appealed for foreign help. Neighbouring India, also affected by tremors, was first to respond by sending in military aircraft with medical equipment and relief teams.