U.S. responds to earthquake in Nepal with disaster response teams, one million dollars

The United States is dispatching a disaster response team to Nepal along with an initial 1 million U.S. dollars in aid after a massive earthquake struck the Asian country and parts of its neighboring states, said the White House in a statement Saturday.

The U.S. "stands ready to assist the government and people of Nepal and the region further," said National Security Council Spokesperson Bernadette Meehan in the statement.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), a U.S. government agency for administering civilian foreign aid, is preparing to send a disaster assistance response team and is activating another urban search and rescue team to accompany disaster experts and assist with assessments of the situation, according to a statement released by Secretary of State John Kerry Saturday.

More than 900 people were killed in the 8.1-magnitude earthquake, which jolted large parts of Nepal, as well as eastern India and Bangladesh, China's Tibet Autonomous Region, Saturday.