April 25, 2015 Nepal Earthquake Devastation
(Near and In Kathmandu, Nepal)
On April 25, 2015, a devastating earthquake struck Nepal. It was one of the deadliest natural disasters to hit Nepal in 100 years, killing thousands of people, injuring thousands more and leaving tens of thousands people homeless and displaced. These images depict the situation images 6 months after the earthquake and again at 2 years after the event. In Kathmandu, Nepal, at 6 months after earthquake, tens of thousands of people were still living in temporary shelters and tent areas. Rebuilding efforts after the earthquake were in a chaotic standstill with a brand new Nepalese government and constitution. The situation was compounded by a fuel crisis. India, unhappy with the new Nepalese constitution, imposed an unofficial blockade on its borders. Gasoline, jet fuel, cooking fuel dwindled down to nothing. Medicines became very limited. Food was unable to be distributed because of no gasoline. Electricity became even more limited. Common people were suffering, the poor suffering even more. At two years after the earthquake, many areas, especially those out of international communities’ radar still had not received any help in rebuilding and the people in these communities had very little access to relief. The Nepalese government seems to be politically paralyzed to distribute the millions of foreign aid dollars that is still sitting in government coffers to assist in re-establishing these earthquake devastated communities. The humanitarian and economic crisis caused by the earthquake has resulted in more vulnerable women and children being preyed upon by human traffickers, malnutrition and illnesses in the poor. But for the resilient Nepalese people, life just goes on.