Pakistan's quake death toll rises to 54,000

The death toll from Pakistan's massive quake is now 54,000, Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao told on Wednesday, raising the total by more than 800.

Sherpao warned that the figure was likely to climb further, firstly because more buildings razed by the October 8 quake are being cleared and secondly because of cold weather in the disaster zone.

"With the severe winter approaching in a few weeks, we are racing against time to save people and have asked them to come down from the highlands," Sherpao told.

Around 36,000 of the dead were in Pakistani Kashmir and some 18,000 were in North West Frontier Province.

Sherpao added that the number of injured had also increased to 77,000, the AP reports.

V.Y.