On April 25, 2015, a violent earthquake struck Nepal, killing more than 9,000 people. As this sad anniversary approaches, Maya Verbist, our Director in Nepal, shares her experiences and what remains of this catastrophe today.
"I was at home with my family. It was a Saturday lunchtime and we were preparing lunch. As soon as the earth started shaking, we rushed outside. Fortunately, our neighborhood wasn't damaged.
We stayed out for the rest of the day and into the night with many of our neighbors. There were many aftershocks. The second night, it rained and we slept with around thirty neighbors in our ground-floor apartment, all the doors open so we could get out if we needed to. It was a difficult and frightening time. But it also brought people closer together.
In Kathmandu, reconstruction remains incomplete.
"10 years after the earthquake, you can still see traces of the quake in the town and villages.
Reconstruction of some of the temples in Durbar Square (the city's historic center) is still underway. And in the narrow streets of the old centers, you can still see houses propped up to prevent them from collapsing."
In rural areas, the situation is often even more precarious.
"Some families are still living in damaged houses. Despite the government's efforts and support in rebuilding (around 2,000 euros), some families haven't received any help. Or it wasn't enough.
Many of these houses are now used as warehouses or left empty, because there wasn't enough money to build a proper house to house the family."
Despite this, progress has been made in certain areas. The greatest challenge remains preparing for another natural disaster of this magnitude.
"Most schools have been rebuilt, as have health centers. The main challenge is disaster preparedness on the part of the state and local residents. Or rather, the lack of preparation. So far, the plans drawn up immediately after the earthquakes have not been implemented (open spaces in the city, building codes, ...)."
