Sword & Trowel 2016: Issue 1
NEPAL EARTHQUAKE A
Update from Pastor Samuel Rai, Canaan Baptist Church, Pokhara
S previously reported, relief work since April 2015 has followed a
fi rst assessment stage, a second emer- gency relief stage and a third stage of providing temporary shelter. During the fi rst and second stages of work some 9,100 families have been helped in inaccessible earthquake areas. The third stage has been partially delayed due to the blockage of importation of building materials and other supplies at the Indian border. Temporary housing (of steel sheet construction) has been provided in various locations on public land with government agreement as villagers could not return to their former loca- tions due to the destruction of sites and instability of terrain. These emer- gency sheds might last for a year or two and will then be dismantled when people return to former or alternative locations to repair and rebuild their homes. In one location (Barpak) it has been possible to build 17 earthquake- proof, steel-framed houses with toilets (at approximately £2,000 each) as a
permanent site was available and it would be years before government help could achieve the same level of facility. Seven destroyed churches were also re- built in 2015 or are due for completion as building materials become available. During 2016, help will be focused
on believers, principally through the rebuilding or repair of churches and helping pastors with livelihood projects. Much livestock (pigs, buffalo, donkeys and poultry) was lost in landslides. Twenty-two church buildings were damaged in addition to the seven de- stroyed. The severity of earthquake dam- age to church buildings was greatest in rural areas, the mountainous re- gions being the worst affected. Many buildings were destroyed or damaged beyond use as they did not have solid foundations and the walls were made of mud and stone. A year on from the earthquakes, in many places no recon- struction work has begun. People are
Above: Pastor Samuel with his wife Mangali. Left: A temporary metal sheet shelter for twelve families, plus a row of toilets and a meeting place for about 200.
Nepal Earthquake page 41
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