Facebook Donate Button Raises $15 Million for Nepal

A simple call to donate appearing in Facebook’s news feeds for one week raised more than $15 million from 754,000 people for relief efforts in earthquake-shattered Nepal, Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Friday.

“I want to thank everyone in our community for coming together to support those affected by the Nepal earthquake,” Mr. Zuckerberg said in a post on his Facebook page.

The social networking site had committed up to $2 million in matching funds, bringing the total contributions from Facebook to $17.4 million. The money will go to the International Medical Corps, which has a significant response effort under way in the country.

The $15-million figure was an update. On April 30, Mr. Zuckerberg said Facebook’s call to donate had brought in $10 million up to that point.

In a video published along with Mr. Zuckerberg’s written message, Facebook and the International Medical Corps said the donations were being used to deliver “lifesaving disaster relief, medical support, and supplies” to earthquake victims in Nepal.

Nepal was struck by a 7.8-magnitude earthquake on April 25. The epicenter was about 50 miles northwest of the capital city Kathmandu, and it leveled thousands of homes, historic sites, and government buildings.

On Friday, Nepal’s National Emergency Operation Center listed the death toll at 7,903.

Some aid organizations have reported a strong response from donors in the United States and elsewhere, even as poor infrastructure has made getting resources to some parts of Nepal difficult.