Nepal Earthquake Update - June 4

Over a month has passed since the deadly earthquake in Nepal that killed more than 8,000 people and injured more than 19,000.

Shelter remains to be the biggest concern. Half a million homes were destroyed in the aftermath of the earthquake and a further 250,000 are damaged. Thousands of people are living outside under tarpaulins and tents as people try to build temporary shelters. Making things worse is monsoon season which is fast approaching. There is a real fear that the situation could deteriorate further.

Children are not only the most vulnerable in disasters such as this, education has been severely affected by the Earthquake. The United Nations estimates 25,000 classrooms have been destroyed.

SOS Children’s Villages have been hard at work in Nepal since the earthquake hit. These are some of the things we have accomplished or are working on right now:

• SOS has child care spaces in operation all around Nepal which keep children safe. In the immediate aftermath, there were 19 child care spaces and we now have concentrated these to 10 facilities which provide children with informal educational activities, meals, and medical and psychological care. We have reached more than 1,500 children since the first earthquake struck April 25
   
• We are working with the Nepalese government to rebuild four public schools that were completely destroyed during the earthquake.
   
• SOS is in the process of finalizing a needs assessment to determine where to rebuild 300 homes that have been destroyed by the earthquakes and we will provide portable, temporary homes to 1,500 families whose homes have been destroyed by the earthquake.
   
• We have been working to increase the work of our SOS social centres which support vulnerable families throughout Nepal, offering healthcare, daycare, training and other services. In addition to the nine social centres already in Nepal, we are adding 3-4 centres in areas most affected by the earthquake, aiding more families.
   
• We have admitted 23 children who have been orphaned or separated from their families because of the earthquake. We are exhausting all measures to reunite the children with their families, but in the event that that’s not possible, we will fully integrate the children into an SOS family at one of our 10 SOS villages in Nepal.

SOS Children’s Villages have been in Nepal for over 40 years and we are committed to helping improve the future of children and families affected by the earthquake.

Donate Now

Canadian's wishing to support SOS Children's Villages response in Nepal are encouraged to sponsor a village in Nepal or to make a direct donation. Your support ensures that SOS Children's Villages can continue to provide a safe and loving home to orphan and abandoned children in Nepal.