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Thousands of terrified survivors of a Himalayan earthquake that killed 81 people and rattled parts of India, Nepal and China crowded on Tuesday into shelters and relatives' homes or stayed out in the open for fear of aftershocks.

Soldiers used dynamite and earthmovers to clear landslides on highways through the steep valleys linking the worst-hit northeastern Indian state of Sikkim to the rest of India.

They managed to clear a path to Mangan, closest to the epicenter of Sunday's 6.9-magnitude quake, but many other communities remained cut off and authorities fear the death toll could rise once rescuers reach them.

Indian army helicopters ferried rescuers and dropped food and supplies to still-inaccessible villages in Sikkim, a sparsely populated and almost entirely mountainous region that was an independent protectorate before becoming an Indian state in 1975.

Residents of the Sikkim state, which borders Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and China's Tibet autonomous region, have been spooked by at least five aftershocks since Sunday, with the strongest a magnitude 5.3.

Dawa Lendup Lepcha, 25, a university student in Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim, said that even though the room he rents was not badly damaged, he was too nervous to stay there alone and moved in with a cousin.

"Even now we feel scared. If a car makes a loud sound or there is some other sudden noise I feel very scared," he said.

Thousands of others moved out of their homes in Gangtok and the neighboring villages and took shelter in the open grounds of a university building and a soccer stadium. Many were sleeping outside, huddling under blankets to ward off the cold. Nighttime temperatures have been about 17 C.

Questions:

1. How many countries were affected by the recent Himalayan earthquake?

2. What was the magnitude of the earthquake?

3. How have officials aided remote locations affected by the quake?

Answers:

1. Three – India, Nepal and China.

2. The main quake registered at 6.9.

3. Army helicopters have ferried rescuers and dropped food and supplies in addition to clearing landslides using dynamite and earthmovers.

（中國日報網英語點津 Helen 編輯）

About the broadcaster:

?Christine Mallari is an intern at China Daily. She was born in Chicago, Illinois and raised in a nearby suburb before moving for college. After recently graduating from the University of Iowa with a degree in English, Journalism and Mass Communications, she moved to Beijing to work with China Daily. Though she has been working in journalism since high school, this is her first time doing so abroad.