April 30, 2015
Nepal
The locals have experienced a weekend earthquake on different places and in different situations. However, their experiences have one thing in common - these people will never forget what they had to go through. Among them, Renuka Magdalene Thakuri, 15-year old Qurnain or Santosh Kumar Magar.
Since last weekend, Renuka Magdalene Thakuri (54 years old) has lived in a shelter close to the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Kathmandu. She confided to charity workers: "We don't feel safe inside buildings, we prefer to stay outside, here in the shelter at the Cathedral of the Assumption, close to our home. This place enhances our sense of security and we are grateful to Caritas Nepal who provided a tent for us. We hope that soon we will return home. We've got food and water. Shops and markets are still closed. We're trying to somehow deal with all of this."
15-year old Qurnain also stays with her family in the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. "When the earthquake began, I was reading a book and my brother was playing games on the Internet. At first, we thought it was the wind, but then everything started to shake and my brother started to shout “it's an earthquake”. My mother was in the bathroom, we were knocking on the door and calling her to go out. She was just taking a bath and therefore told us to run out ourselves. I was scared and thought I was going to die. Now I think everything will be fine. We came to the Cathedral because we know that there's a lot of people, so we can help each other and be together."
Qurnain’s brother Ahmed adds: "I had the feeling that I was flying when my older brother caught me and brought me out of the house and onto the street."
Santosh Kumar Magar (29 years old) is a teacher and one of the new member of the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Just when the earthquake began, he was participating in the ordination of one of the new monks in eastern Nepal, in the area of Okhaldhunga. "It was nearly 11 o’clock when the earthquake erupted. I walked out of the room and saw two or three houses tumbling down to the ground. Even several animals were killed. But all the villagers were safe because they gathered in the Cathedral due to the ordination ceremony. It was a terrible experience. I had never experienced anything like this. It was the first time. I can't describe it... it was terrible and I was upset."
After the earthquake, Santosh along with other participants set out on a journey back to Kathmandu. “On the halfway back we had to find another path because of landslide blocking our road. Many of the village houses were completely demolished, some only in part. Santosh describes the situation during their return: “All the people ran out into the middle of the road where they gathered and called for help.”
In two days, Caritas Nepal and charities from USA, Australia and Austria provided refuges, blankets and dried food to two thousand families in Kathmandu. If needed, they will continue helping this city. Now, the aim of charities is to find a way to help the worst-affected areas: Gorkha, Sindapalchowk, Nuwakot a Kavre.
The priority of charities in Nepal is to ensure emergency tarp shelters, particularly because of the current rain and especially the forthcoming monsoon season, and also to provide food, hygiene kits and psychosocial assistance.
Caritas Czech Republic still receives donations - account no. 55660022/0800 (reference 107) or SMS donations “DMS CHARITASVET” on the number 87 777.
We warmly thank all our donors and supporters for any contribution.
