In pictures: Nepal’s devastating earthquake

Search and rescue efforts are underway in Nepal after a massive earthquake struck near the country's capital Kathmandu on Saturday, taking the lives of thousands and leaving behind a trail of destruction.

The 7.8 magnitude quake is reported to be the most powerful to hit the Himalayan nation in 80 years.

The death toll from the natural disaster rose above 3,200 on Monday and is expected to climb as the full scale of devastation becomes known.

While the majority of fatalities occurred in and around Kathmandu Valley, the quake has also been blamed for deaths on Mount Everest and in India, Tibet and Bangladesh, according to the Associated Press.

Click ahead to take a look at pictures of the aftermath, as residents and aid workers begin to pick up the pieces from the quake.

Deep cracks emerged in roadways after the earthquake ripped across Kathmandu. Road destruction is currently a key factor hampering the ability of aid workers to reach devastated areas.

Temporary shelters are set up in an army ground in Kathmandu for those displaced or afraid to return to their homes after a series of aftershocks rocked the city on Sunday.

Soldiers and residents inspect debris of buildings destroyed by the powerful tremors. Many houses, shops and buildings crumbled, leaving thousands dead or trapped under the debris.

Nepali rescue personnel find a trapped earthquake survivor.

A Buddha statue is surrounded by debris from a collapsed temple in the UNESCO world heritage site of Bhaktapur. This is one among many centuries-old historical monuments that were reduced to rubble.

An injured mountaineer is loaded onto a rescue helicopter at Everest base camp on Sunday, a day after an avalanche triggered by an earthquake slammed into a section of the camp.

The avalanche is thought to have killed at least 17 people and injured 61, according to the Associated Press.

The avalanche began Saturday on Mount Kumori, a 22,966-foot-high mountain just a few miles from Everest, gathering strength as it headed toward the base camp where climbing expeditions had been preparing to make their summit attempts, the AP reported.

Governments and aid agencies rush search-and-rescue and disaster relief experts to Kathmandu, with India, China, Pakistan and the U.S. leading international efforts.

Here, Chinese search and rescue personnel and their search dogs are preparing to head Nepal from Beijing.

Indian army personnel prepare relief materials to be airlifted to earthquake victims.

Kathmandu's airport opened on Sunday; however some aid flights were prevented from landing due to aftershocks, according to Reuters.

Relatives of victims walk to a cremation site to perform the last rites of their loved ones.

A Nepalese resident plays with his 8-month-old daughter as he is treated for injuries sustained in the earthquake.

Mourners in Jackson Heights, a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens where there is a sizable Nepali community, hold a vigil for the victims of the earthquake.