Quake Toll at 38,000 and Rising

Pakistani officials say the death toll from the recent earthquake is 38,000, and expected to go higher.

Senior military spokesman Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan said Saturday 62,000 people are injured from the 7.6 magnitude quake that rocked the Kashmir region last week, The New York Times reports.

President Pervez Musharraf says the number of dead will definitely rise for many reasons.

Rescue teams haven’t reached people in remote regions and medical attention is being hampered by the destruction to some hospitals and the subsequent over-capacity situation at others.

Bad weather has further hampered relief crews trying to get to remote villages and towns in the Himalayas where an unknown number of people are presumably experiencing bad conditions.

The World Health Organization is pleading for more medical relief aid in the form of money, supplies and personnel.