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For those of you who missed the news these past few days and were planning on traveling to Nepal for some hiking, don’t. Nepal is currently dealing with the after-effects (and after-shocks) of one of the largest earthquakes in recent memory. According to government figures that have been released, around 8 million people have been affected by the catastrophe and over 1.4 million are in need of food assistance. Compounding the sheer scale of aid that’s needed is the fact that the entire country is difficult to travel around and bring aid to where it’s needed most. The avalanche has already killed at least 3,800 people with some sources estimating a death toll of over 15,000 by the time everyone is found.
Compounding all the difficulties Nepal is already facing is the fact that the country’s one airport in Kathmandu has been seriously damaged in the quake, making emergency flights with aid relief a more difficult and dangerous prospect than it could’ve been. That being said, it hasn’t stopped countries from around the world dedicating resources, and soldiers in some situations, to helping the Nepali people overcome this tragedy and survive for another day. Already, relief is pouring into the country from both States as well as international organizations. US special forces who were already in the country when the quakes struck are helping with relief efforts and the Israeli air force is flying out people who have been medically cleared fit so that they can be treated elsewhere, helping to relieve the overwhelmed Nepalese hospitals around the country.
Along with countries chipping in to help, international aid organizations around the world have sprung into action. MAP International charity has a medical supply shipment that has enough equipment in it to support 10,000 victims for around 3 months and it’s going to be sent as soon as it gets official clearance. The UN is releasing $15 million in emergency funds to help the country and the Asian Development Bank has announced a $3 million grant and another $200 million is available for the rehabilitation projects that are going to be needed to help rebuild Nepal. Along with those funds, the US Agency for International Development is releasing a further $9 million to help the recovery effort. While this is certainly a lot of money and support, it’s still going to be years before Nepal has fully recovered from the devastation.
If you’d like to read more, the link is here.
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