31 Jan FIRST HUMANITARIAN AID IN NEPAL – Report of January 24 2024

ASIA team composed by 4 people left from Kathmandu on January 9th to join the areas affected by the earthquake in north-west of Nepal. The first week has been spent in Shirpachaur village (Jajarkot district), where materials for the construction of temporary shelters were distributed to 153 families.

On January 17th they remained on-site for the distribution of the same materials to approximately 210 families in the village of Golchaurtole and other 3 small villages in Rukum West district.

Thanks to donations we have already delivered 370 temporary shelters. We can still help many families.

ASIA’s team composed by 4 people left from Kathmandu on January 9th to join the areas affected by the earthquake on the North West of Nepal. The first week has been spent in Shirpachaur village (Jajarkot district), where materials for the construction of temporary shelters were distributed to 153 families.

On January 17th they remained on-site for the distribution of the same materials to approximately 210 families in the village of Golchaurtole and other 3 small villages in Rukum West district.

“The situation we observed is still dire – told Emanuele Assini, the ASIA Country Representative –  with very low temperatures at night and no concrete assistance received from the government and organizations. Some families have organized themselves by building temporary shelters with available materials, as recovered CGI panels from destroyed houses, wood, etc”.

During the first week, ASIA team conducted a survey with all the families in Shirpachaur to understand the specific needs of each family and prepare local materials (mainly wood) necessary for the shelter construction. A team of engineers have been deployed (1 senior engineer for supervision and training, 2 field engineers, one in Shirpachaur and one in Rukum). They will remain in the field to support the communities in building temporary shelters, with the assistance of community masons. The engineers will also oversee the construction of two temporary schools in Bayalatole and Shirpachaur (Jajarkot).

In Shirpachaur, materials for the construction of temporary shelters were distributed to 153 families. Each family received the following materials:

• 20 Corrugated Galvanised Iron (CGI) panels in sizes of 6, 9, and 12 feet;
• 3 kg of nails in various sizes to secure local materials used in shelter construction (wood and CGI panels recovered from damaged houses);
• galvanized iron wire to secure the panels and prevent them from being pierced by nails, allowing for future reuse in permanent homes;
• 14 feet of 5mm thick insulation material (polyethylene) for thermal insulation;
• 1 tarpaulin measuring 12×15 feet

The ASIA team will remain in the field until January 27th to complete the distributions in Rukum and monitor the construction of the first shelters. Meanwhile, the field engineers will stay for the entire duration of the construction work.

“In these days, we also met with the principals of the two schools in Bayalatole and Shirpachaur, measuring the available surfaces carefully for the construction of the two temporary schools. We have decided to build two schools, each with the size of 9 classrooms. Additionally, we surveyed the damaged schools and discussed the needs with principals and teachers to begin working on preliminary designs and estimates for permanent schools” added Emanuele Assini.

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We can still help many families