'The ground shook and everything was destroyed' - in Nepal's earthquake zone with Christian Aid

Durga Badapur Shrestha frowns, picks up a nail and hammers it through the sheet of shimmering corrugated iron roofing on which he sits. Behind him across a deep valley rises the sheer wall of the Himalayas – a serrated wall of snow and ice.

Startlingly beautiful, it was the same force that created those blindingly white peaks – the highest on earth – that destroyed the 73 year-old’s home and millions more, and killing more than 8,000 people.

The April 2015 Nepal earthquake was the worst natural disaster to hit the country for more than 80 years. Over 21,000 were injured in the quake, which measured 7.8 on the Richter scale. For one of the poorest countries on earth, the impact was devastating.

The shockwaves were felt hundreds of miles from the epicentre in Gorkha, north west of Kathmandu. The historic heart of the capital was flattened – temples which have stood for many hundreds of years collapsed, along with apartment blocks and houses. Roads buckled, bridges snapped and the earth was torn apart. Hillsides shook, sending tons of mud and rock onto roads and villages. In popular climbing and trekking spots like Everest and Lantang, avalanches inundated villagers and camps, burying hundreds of people.

The world watched on in horror, but Nepal’s nightmare was only beginning. Aftershocks continued to shake the country – prompting widespread panic and causing weakened buildings to collapse.

Then, on May 12, a second earthquake struck. With a magnitude of 7.3, and an epicentre in Dolakha, north east of Kathmandu and close to the Tibetan border, it killed another 200 people – most of them impoverished villagers.

Thousands were injured and many more lost everything they owned – people like Durga and his wife Hari Maya, 65.

“I was away from my house when the earthquake hit, but my wife was still inside,” he says, wiping a tear from his eye. “The ground was shaking and I fell down and hit my head.

“The houses totally collapsed and I thought she was dead. Fortunately she was rescued by a  neighbour and taken outside. It was such a relief – but everything was destroyed.”

Durga Badapur Shrestha rebuilds his home

In many areas, like Durga's village of Attarpur, in Sindhupalchok District, the destruction was complete, with barely a single building left standing.

The traditional Nepali stone and wood homes which give the country its great charm proved lethal. Those which didn't collapse were often damaged beyond repair. Families moved out, fearing they too would be buried in rubble in one of the frequent aftershocks.

I felt one of those aftershocks as I met survivors in a remote valley on the Tibetan border; a deep guttural rumble echoing among the hills. The villagers barely looked up, so used are they to such things.

I was travelling with disaster relief workers from the charity Christian Aid – among the most active in the quake zone. From its base in Kathmandu, the charity has coordinated the distribution of aid to some of the worst affected victims. And, a year on from the disaster, the benefits are already being felt.

They include aid worker and translator Amit Chakarwarty, with whom we have travelled to this peaceful spot – a lush garden of Eden called Suri, in in the shadow of snow-capped Mount Gaurishankar – which, at 23,400 ft, dominates the surrounding area.

“We acted very quickly after the first earthquake, working with other agencies to get emergency aid to those who most needed it," he says. "Now we are helping people rebuild – giving safe shelter to those with no homes and helping people get back on their feet.”

The charity has already reached 400,000 people in the worst-affected areas: Sindhupalchok, Rasuwa, Gorkha, Dhading and Lalitpur.

The most immediate need, says Amit, is for shelter, and Christian Aid was quick off the mark to distribute 22,000 tarpaulins and handed out more than 5,300 tool kits to enable people to build their own emergency shelters, protecting them from the monsoon and the tough winter.

Bedlaxmi Shrestha withthe ruins of her home in Attarpur

Now the focus has changed to helping people build more substantial shelters with corrugated iron. More than 5,200 of these transitional shelters, have been built – their metallic roofs shimmering in the fierce sun among the terraced fields carved out of the Himalayan foothills. Instruction is also being given on earthquake-proofing, affording protection from any big future quake – something feared by everyone I met.

Hand in hand with shelter comes water supply and sanitation. In the aftermath of the disaster, people in displaced communities faced many hours’ walk to reach safe water. Engineers have supplied communities with fresh drinking water while health workers educate villages on basic hygiene and sanitation.

We joined one such session in Attarpur, led by public health promoter Saroja Gira, 23, who demonstrated to a crowd of villagers the correct way to wash their hands and carry out other tasks.

“People have faced so many problems,” she says. “There were problems with drinking water, shelter and toilets. When people have been displaced from their homes, it is important they pay attention to hygiene and stay healthy.”

Among those watching is widow Bedlaxmi Shrestha, 55, who is afraid to sleep in her badly damaged home. “When the earthquake struck the whole house started shaking," she says.

"I felt a pain in my head and after an hour I woke, crying that my house had been destroyed. My neighbour told me not to go in my house again. There was so much rubble. Thankfully no one died. I heartily thank Christian Aid for supporting us.”

The earthquake had struck on a Saturday – Nepal’s only day of rest. The schools, many of which collapsed were closed and many people were outside in the fields – saving them from more serious injury. If it had happened on any other day, the death toll would have been far worse.

While the devastation in the Kathmandu Valley was severe – with families still camping out in temporary shelters among the rubble of temples and brick houses – those in remote mountain areas suffered worse, with minimal access to water, medical care and aid.

It is in these communities, at the vagaries of the cold Nepalese winter, that Christian Aid has been working to keep people warm. Each affected household has received a stove, blankets, mats and a tarpaulin. Among those to have benefited is Laxmi Upreti, 70, who lives in a shelter on a mountaintop settlement called Lamidada overlooking Mount Gaurishankar.

Devastated temple close to the Tibetan border

It is a stunning spot, with clear air, stupendous views and a couple of goats grazing among lush vegetation. It does, however, get bitterly cold – especially if, like Laxmi, you are forced to live in a shelter with no source of warmth.

“After my house collapsed I thought ‘where am I going to sleep?’ because everything had collapsed," she tells me. "I spent four days in the open then received some help from the government and a kit from Christian Aid.

“We are all worried about the next big earthquake. But thanks to the help I have received, I do feel safe here and don’t want to move.”

Having given people shelter, says Amit, the next step is helping them to become self-sufficient again.  To this end, Christian Aid is distributing cash grants and vouchers to help people rebuild their livelihoods. Often the money is spent on goats, which can be bred and sold – a lifeline in rural communities.

Others have been trained in vital skills. In Suri we met Janak Shrestha, 38, who has been trained as a carpenter, and is now helping villagers rebuild their homes.

“We didn’t know what was going on when the earthquake struck,” he recalls, sitting among boulders the size of cars, which had thundered down the valley side, coming to rest mere feet from his home.

“There was too much shaking so we ran to the river. All the family were screaming ‘we are going to die!’ We had no hope.”

His mother was hurt, injuring her leg and being knocked unconscious. “We tried to take her to hospital, but it took too much time,” he grimaces. “A landslide came down and blocked the way.”

He carried her on his back to a small rural medical centre a day away.

“In the first quake the houses cracked, but in the second they all collapsed," he says. "I know someone who was trapped in their house. They were rescued but then died. She had fractured legs and bled to death. It takes four to five days to reach the district hospital.”

“Due to the regular tremors I didn’t feel safe,” he says. “Seventy per cent of the houses totally collapsed and the rest either partially collapsed or are cracked and stones are still falling here. But don’t have a choice; we have to stay.

“Fortunately we only lost our wealth, not our lives, though we all fear another big earthquake in the future.”

He was trained in carpentry under a Christian Aid progamme and is now helping others. “It has been good to get this training,” he says, “I feel confident making earthquake-resistant homes. Now I want to make a career out of it.”  His mother Ganga, leaned on her crutches in the shade of her wrecked home.

“I don’t know where these earthquakes come from – maybe the goddess was sad with us," she sighs.

"I am scared – and am worried in case another one comes. But I am happy Christian Aid is helping us. Thank you to everyone for giving to them and supporting us.” 

To help change the lives of earthquake-affected families in Nepal, by donating online at caweek.org calling 08080 006 006, or texting ‘SAFE’ to 70040 to give £5.