July 9, 2015
Nepal
The Caritas team left to Sindhupalchowk, a region in Nepal, at the end of June to provide help to people affected by the earthquake in April. The vehicle with packages left over the night, however, our employees journey was halted in the early hours of morning due to a landslide cause by heavy rain. There have been similar situations like this in July.
Having stopped in front of the debris, Dipak Tamang, the team leader for Sindupalchowk region, from Caritas Nepal called the army unit assigned to this region. Their representatives tried to find a bulldozer to clear the road; however, they informed it might take few hours. Therefore, our team decided instead continue the journey on foot.
They left their vehicle and started their journey more than one kilometer long through the landslide. Having crossed this part, they managed to hire another vehicle only to find the bridge over the river had numerous cracks. “The only way to continue is on foot” informed Dipak his colleagues in the Caritas Center in Nepal over the phone.
Similar situations are common in Sindhupalchowku. This region has been most affected by the earthquake and had the highest number of victims and damages. People from the mountains need to walk three to four hours up and down the hills to reach help distribution centres. The Caritas team were planning to pass the packages with help to the villagers from the most remote areas first so that they could reach home early. Unfortunately, it is difficult to move due to the landslide and floods. As a result, it was already dark when they reached home carrying the packages with help on their backs.
American CRS, another NGO in Nepal, also has to deal with issues caused by monsoon rains while delivering help. They supply shelters to the north part of Gorkha region which is not accessible by road. CRS employees have cooperated with World Food Programme that has supplied helicopters to deliver the necessary material. Nevertheless, the flights have often been cancelled during the past few weeks due to the monsoons and bad weather.
Caritas Australia also provides help in Nepal, in Kavre region. One of the beneficiaries of Caritas help is Ms. Parbati Dhungana who lives in a village called Dhunganabesi. She was offering prayers together with other villagers when the earthquake stroke on 25th April. She met Caritas employees two months ago for the first time. She said: ”Caritas was the first organization that visited the region”. The reason might be that local villagers know Caritas thanks to the agricultural program for pest control.
Caritas Nepal supplied canvases and blankets to 110 households in the region including 20 households living in the most remote area in a small group near the village.
Ms.Sharmila Mejar from Sanouchaur village could build her temporary shelter thanks to the canvas and help that she received from her neighbours. She used the canvas for a roof, bamboo mats for walls, all of which she attached to bamboo pillars. Before this shelter, the family of 5 lived in a shed where they slept, cooked and ate.
Mr. Timlal’s family, also from Sanouchaur village, also received a canvas, blankets, package with hygienic necessities and small household items. They spread the canvas to have a shaded place in front of their entrance (to have a small porch) so that they could sit outside in the hot summer. They use the pots and pans for cooking and given bucket for storing water.
All families were grateful for the received help. They lived in houses constructed from mud bricks before the earthquake. The walls became cracked after the earthquake and were not safe to live in. Mr. Timlal received a notification from the government recently stating his family will receive financial support of 15,000 Nepali Rupees (about 3,500 CZK). They have not received the support in the village yet. The family now needs wavy metal sheet to build more stable shelter.
The Carita’s help continues and we are preparing for bigger construction works in autumn when the monsoon season is finished, for example to repair schools. Caritas Czech Republic will cooperate with Caritas Switzerland.
