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Nepal Earthquake 2015

Introduction

A massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit Nepal on 25th April 2015, Saturday at 11:56am local time. The epicenter of the earthquake was Barpak village of Gorkha district, approximately 77 km northwest of Kathmandu followed by 265 aftershocks as of 25th May 2015 causing casualties of around 9000 with more than 23000 injured and countless homes and buildings being destroyed. The earthquake mostly affected the central region of Nepal which includes Kathmandu, Bhaktapur, Lalitpur, Sindhupalchowk, Dolakha, Dhading, Rasuwa, Ramechhap, Nuwakot and Chitwan. This was the biggest that Nepal experienced since the 1934 Nepal-Bihar earthquake strike Nepal 80 years before.

Background

It was Baisakh 12, Saturday, April 25 a public holiday in Nepal. Most people were busy celebrating their weekend as they had an occasion too i.e. the Nepali New Year had just begun. Suddenly, it was 11:56 am local time and it started shaking. Nobody understood what was happening for the first few seconds and then everybody realized it was an earthquake, a massive one. The quake continued for one minute followed by several average and minor aftershocks.

After the earthquake, tragic news on the destruction was covered by most of the national, international and social media which was really heartbreaking. The earthquake had caused a great loss of people and their property including the historical and cultural monuments which were the symbol of pride among Nepalese. Nepalese who are well known all around the globe for their bravery as Bir Gorkhali got shake by the love and care for their loved ones including the cultural monuments of their country.

Within the Kathmandu valley itself, there was much destruction caused by the earthquake. The waterlines, electric poles, telecommunication towers and many more were damaged by the quake. The BPW Nepal couldn’t stay still watching all these and began helping anyhow the people in need. As the initiation of relief distribution, BPW Nepal started distributing water to the people in the crowded and affected parts of the city where people were facing much scarcity of water. Eventually, the members of BPW Nepal from different chapters started getting united one by one and the further relief distribution activities were carried on under the supervision and guidance of our President, Mrs. Ambica Shrestha.

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2015-12-04

We have not been able to update our blog. We have been facing very difficult times with political problem. Our borders have been unofficially blocked and we have been facing shortage of fuel, Diesel, petrol, cooking gas etc. Transport has been very badly effected. This is now over 110 days. Due to these problems we have not been able to construct any houses after October .

There were other factors too causing delays . We have had our main yearly festival Dashain. This is when all families gather together, those who are away from their families they all try to go back to meet with their elders and get their blessings.

Then Nov 9^th we started our next holdiays the five days for celebration for the festival of lights Diwali. During this period we had to stop the construction . We have not been able to continue till date. It is terrible as winter is setting in and people are still in sheds and tents.

Meanwhile have had a regional seminar on entreprenership development with Bhutan India, Sri lanka, Maldives , Myanmar , Bangladesh and Nepal sponsored by World Bank.

Our members have had training on child security and violence, Agriculture and Agriculture waste Management.

Our chapters are working on training and various projects.

We will be updating you on the constructions. I do not know if I informed that in Chogdol we completed 14 houses and handed over, the people are living in them.

Thank you all for your help and all the very best to all.

Rebuilding Work at Chhagadol Contd............

2015-09-01

Rebuilding Work

2015-08-10

Rebuilding work in Chhagdol is going on. Due to small holdings, the shelters are close by. Under such situation, if we build (12+2) shelters separately the expenses will be increased. Hence, we have started to build them together. Some of them have been completed to DPC level while others are in pillar, door and window phase. Meanwhile, we had to halt our construction for five days due to incessant heavy rainfall. We are planning to complete our first phase of construction by the end of August if the weather allow us.

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2015-07-22

Construction work is in progress at Chhagdole.

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2015-07-15

It is after a few days of lapse that we are in the blog.

We have been working but we could not write and let you all know what has been happening.

Just to refresh you after the earthquakes that we at BPW Nepal have been working. We at first distributed relief material specially food as this was very necessary. After we had together with Hotel Dwarikas reached over 4000 families we stopped. By this time there were many organization and individual who had and where distributing relief material.

We then turned to the other need for the people. This was shelters as they had lost their homes specially in the villages. We went to check various places where we had distributed relief to find areas where the houses has came down and these belonged to poor people.

Ambica Shrestha personally visited two villages and decided to build on an area not too far from Kathmandu but with the poorest community. A place called Chhagdol. We have to build 42 houses and a Community Centre.

After all the process of legality of the plots of each house , drawings of the construction, the commitment of the villages to give voluntary labor for all the houses, the formal permission of the municipality to build. We have started building 12 houses after we finish this . We will build the others.

Of course we need your support.

Flashback

2015-06-30

We started to distribute relief materials within a week after massive earthquake hit Nepal. Relief materials including food, sanitary items and basic medicines were distributed in various affected districts. After immediate relief distribution, we had begun field survey for need assessment. After field survey, We are in phase of reconstruction of shelter at Chhagdol ,Nagarjun Municipality. We have a plan to build four shelters at Chhagdol at initial phase. Reconstruction at Chhagdol, Nagarjun Municipality is going on.

Working on foundation of shelter

2015-06-26

Now, we are working on foundation of shelter at Chhagdol, Nagarjun municipality.

Reconstruction update

2015-06-24

Reconstruction update at Chhagdol, Nagarjun municipality

Counseling to people about safe construction at Chhagdole by Invention Engineering Service

Husband and wife both are blind; wife is pregnant, 8 month running. House completely collapsed. Their family includes their old aged mother. They need help. BPW Nepal is eagerly planning for reconstruction of their shelter.

Husband

Name :Yam Bahadur Dungana

Age: 36 Years

Wife

Name: Yami Maya Dungana

Age: 34 years

Adress: Khani Goun -1, Nuwakot

Nagarjun municipality

2015-06-23

Today, rubble of 10 houses cleared to build shelter at Chhagdol, Nagarjun municipality ward no. 6.

Engineering visit at Chhagdol

2015-06-22

Engineer visited Chhagdol, Nagarjun municipality ward no. 6. Now, reconstruction work at Chhagdol is going on.

Clearning debris at Chhopdol, Nagarjun Municipality

2015-06-18

Now, we are clearning debris of devastated houses because we do not have extra land to build shelter at Chhopdol, Nagarjun municipality ward no. 6 . We have a plan to build four shelters at initial phase.

Nepal Earthquake 2015

2015-06-06

Date: 16/06/2015

Visited two different sites and looked at the devastated state of houses. We will be now making drawings with engineers for small houses for these people. It is really necessary that we make for them else rains will here and they have no shelter.

Date: 12/06/2015

BPW Nepal is constantly working

Reconstruction work at Chapagaun, Lalitpur

Distribution of relief materials (food) to 90 families at Lagankhel Camp , Lalitpur

Another Disaster: Wednesday landslide, death toll reached 53 in Taplejung

Date: 10/06/2015

During Field Survey Chopdole, Nagarjun Municipality near Kathmandu where we are planning to build shelter

Date: 09/06/2015

Field Survey

During Field Survey Jitpur Fedi near Kathmandu where we are planning to build shelter

Date: 06/06/2015

Volunteers conducting awareness program on sanitation

Water Distribution

Earthquake Relief Activities

2015-06-06

Relief material packages at the store in Dwarika’s

BPW Nepal is continuously carrying on its activities of relief distribution their helping hand during this difficult time with food distribution as the first priority and building shelter as the second.

BPW Nepal till date has been providing foods, medicines, sanitary goods and tents in the mostly affected villages of Nuwakot, Sindhupalchowk, Dhading, Kathmandu, Bhaktapur, Lalitpur and Rasuwa districts along the BPW members effected. The villages which do not have easy access to the roads were the first priority of BPW Nepal. Also many more accessible roads were damaged by the landslide after the earthquake. The effective assessment for the selection of villages has been possible with the continuous support of Dwarika’s Welfare.

Volunteers passing the packages of relief material to the vehicles for delivery

Volunteers and Victims

Truck on way to delivery

The aftershocks haven’t stopped till date. The BPW volunteers are fearlessly volunteering for this whole event since the beginning which has already become more than a month since the second day of earthquake. During this phase, BPW Nepal also felt the trauma that the younger generation of Nepal was going through. BPW Nepal has successfully been organizing child trauma management programs through counseling with games and other activities to minimize the fear of earthquake from children’s mind in various places of Kathmandu and Bhaktapur.

Baby girl making Dharahara (tower): She keeps on recalling her memory of climbing Dharahara with her parents just two days before the massive earthquake took place and destroyed it.

Children enjoying the entertainment program organized by BPW Nepal

President with the children during the trauma management session

Children enjoying the entertainment program at Child Friendly Space

Children learning to make paper bags

Children showing paper bags after making it

BPW Nepal also take a medical team with them while distributing the relief materials in the remote areas to meet the medical and sanitation needs of the people. Most of the local health posts and clinics have been destroyed by the earthquake because of which people are being deprived of even the normal medicines. The medical teams mainly have been focusing the pregnant women, children and the elderly people. The need for tetanus injection was highly in demand among others as many had injured themselves while rushing to be safety from the earthquake and its aftershocks.

Medical attention

Destroyed homes

These all are continuously ongoing programs where building shelter is the long term plan. Currently, BPW Nepal volunteers are doing survey on the effective earthquake resistant houses that can be built with minimum usage of resources. BPW Nepal also has a plan of making this shelter building a plan for a Model Community in some of the most quake affected areas.