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On Saturday 25 April 2015 a 7.8 Richter earthquake devastated Nepal, one of the poorest countries in Asia. Over 8,000 people died and 17,000 were injured in the disaster, including a three-year-old girl called Bivisha (photo) whose leg was fractured. Almost five months later, the initial emergency is over. The injured have been given first aid, although the houses and schools are still just heaps of red bricks scattered on the ground. Terre des hommes (Tdh) is continuing to look after the injured children.
Continuing care
Today Tdh is still looking after injured children such as three-year-old Bivisha, whose leg was broken when the toilets collapsed. ‘Her leg was put in plaster, but as the days passed she complained more and more that it was hurting’, says her mother Kalpana. When Tdh examined her at a mobile clinic, the doctor realized that her leg had been badly set and decided to send her at once to the Hospital and Rehabilitation Centre for Disabled Children (HRDC). On 16 July, nearly three months after the earthquake, Bivisha was given the right care and a new plaster cast. ‘Not only the treatment was free, but so were the food, accommodation and costs of travel to the hospital,’ says her mother. By then the right leg was six centimetres shorter than the other one. ‘But the doctor assured me that with suitable treatment and physiotherapy it will return to its original length,’ she says confidently.
Further assistance
To date, nearly 45,000 patients have been treated at 60 mobile clinics, and over 6,000 children have taken part in recreational activities organized on the spot by Tdh teams. But more aid is needed. Efforts will now focus on creating some 30 protected areas for children, building 700 toilets for families and repairing water-supply systems and five health centres.
Terre des hommes brings about positive change to the everyday lives of more than two million children and their families every year. Learn more about our projects in Nepal.
Read more:
Nepal: What is Terre des hommes doing on-site?
Nepal: Terre des hommes provides emergency assistance to the children victims of the earthquake
