Rescuers pulled a 15-year-old boy alive from the rubble of Nepal's earthquake Thursday, bringing a rare moment of joy to the ruined capital Kathmandu, five days after a disaster which killed nearly 6,000 people.

The rescue of Pemba Tamang, who told AFP that he stayed alive by eating ghee, was hailed as a miracle and greeted with cheers from crowds of bystanders who massed to watch the drama unfold at a ruined guesthouse.

For seven years, Pralhad Ghimire sent back money from his job as a scaffolder in Qatar to build a home just outside the Nepalese capital Kathmandu.

Now the two-storey, eight-roomed house is gone and Ghimire -- like many Nepalese workers abroad -- can't even afford to fly home to help his family.

Rescuers pulled a 15-year-old boy alive from the rubble of Nepal's massive earthquake on Thursday, five days after the disaster which is now known to have killed more than 5,500 people.

The teenager's rescue from the ruins of a collapsed building in Kathmandu provided a rare moment of joy as relief coordinators warned it could take five days to reach some of the worst hit areas, accessible only by foot.

The United Nations on Wednesday appealed for $415 million for Nepal, saying it urgently needs more funds to provide relief to people affected by a devastating earthquake.

The U.N. said there was a critical need to provide shelter, water, food and medical care to those hit by the 7.8-magnitude quake that struck on Saturday, killing more than 5,000 people and injuring more than 10,000. 

Israel is advising its nationals to leave earthquake-hit Nepal, the foreign ministry said Wednesday, fearing disease and violence after desperate Nepalis clashed with riot police over supplies and aid.

Foreign ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon told AFP the warning came after helicopters sent to evacuate Israeli citizens were mobbed and attacked by Nepalis trying to get on board.

As he lay trapped for some 82 hours under the rubble of his Kathmandu hotel after Nepal's devastating earthquake, Rishi Khanal knew what he must do to survive: drink his own urine.

After a painstaking rescue effort, Nepalese and French emergency workers finally pulled the 28-year-old alive late Tuesday from the wreckage, from where he had been desperately calling relatives on his phone for days.

After days of sleeping outdoors with her two young children and hours of waiting in the strong sun for a bus out of Nepal's quake-devastated capital, Rajana's patience finally snapped.

"We've been left starving in the cold and the best this government can give us is this queue. Why are they so slow?" demanded Rajana as she lined up along with thousands of other Nepalis for a bus to her home village.

Desperate Nepalis clashed with riot police and seized supplies of bottled water in the capital Wednesday as anger boiled over among survivors of an earthquake that killed more than 5,000 people.

Supplies are running thin and aftershocks have strained nerves in the ruined city, home to some 2.5 million before it was shattered by Saturday's 7.8 magnitude quake.

The United Nations said Tuesday it would draw $15 million (13.7 million euros) from its emergency fund to help kickstart relief operations in earthquake-ravaged Nepal, where thousands have already perished.

"This will go to support to U.N. agencies to meet emergency needs that include... food, water, medication, but also logistical support," said Jens Laerke, spokesman for the U.N. humanitarian agency OCHA.

Hungry and desperate villagers rushed towards relief helicopters in remote areas of Nepal Tuesday, begging to be airlifted to safety, four days after a monster earthquake killed more than 5,000 people.

"The ground keeps shaking, even this morning it did. Every time it feels like we will be swallowed, that we will die now. I want to get out of here!" said Sita Gurung, 24, whose home had been wrecked.