KEENAN'S KIDS

December 10, 2015

Aftermath of Nepal Earthquakes

Nepal suffered a 7.8 magnitude earthquake on April 25, 2015, and then suffered another one of 7.3 magnitude on May 12, 2015. As a result, approximately 600,000 families have been displaced from their collapsed homes. Orchid Garden Nepal(OGN), the children’s daycare center located in Kathmandu and supported by Keenan’s Kids, lies almost equally between the two earthquake epicenters.

Since the earthquakes, Nepal has had to deal with terrible monsoon rains throughout the summer which have added to the crop devastation from the earthquakes. Further, the India/Nepal blockade which began on  September 23, 2015, is an economic and humanitarian crisis which has severely affected Nepaland its economy. As a landlocked nation, Nepal imports all of its petroleum supplies from India. Roughly 300 fuel trucks enter from India on a normal day, but this has dwindled to a sporadic passage of 5–10 fuel trucks daily since the start of the crisis. Meanwhile, none of the $4 billion of internationally donated quake relief funds to the Nepali government have been dispersed to survivors even after many months, causing anger among Nepalis and international agencies alike.[

All of this has had a significant adverse impact on OGN. To begin with, they have been rationed on propane gas which they need to cook with. Empty cylinders line the streets hoping to be refilled. At present, more than 80% of their cooking is being done with firewood, which is also scarce. Because of the crop devastation and blockade, meals are down to once a day (versus twice a day) for the children. The country is in gridlock and the people are suffering.

Keenan’s Kids has doubled its efforts this year to help support this devastated community. We are thankful to all of you who, in Keenan’s spirit, continue to help us along the way.