The powerful 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck the remote and rural districts of Rukum (West) and Jajarkot shortly before midnight on Friday (local time) as families slept in their largely mud-brick homes, leaving many ended up under the rubble. Several aftershocks have been reported since then.
The shaking was also felt in the capital Kathmandu, about 510 kilometers away. People rushed out of their homes, memories of the deadly earthquakes of April-May 2015 still fresh in their minds.
The 2015 earthquakes claimed nearly 9,000 lives, destroyed or damaged more than 500,000 homes and reduced cities, schools, hospitals and centuries-old historical sites to rubble.
Children are at greatest risk
Alice Akunga, representative of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Nepal, said children and their families are most at risk, having lost their homes, schools and health centers.
Estimates indicate that thousands of school-aged children live in the affected areas and will be affected.
“The full extent of the damage will unfold in the coming days and unfortunately the number of people affected is likely to increase,” she said in a statement, adding that UNICEF teams are on the ground, assessing the impact and providing urgent assistance, including blankets and tarpaulins.
“We are gauging what support they need at this crucial time in the areas of health, nutrition, education, water, sanitation and hygiene, child protection and social protection,” Ms Akunga said.
Other UN agencies have also stepped up their response. The World Health Organization (WHO) does mobilize medical teams and the UN Satellite Center (UNOSAT) have been activated to conduct remote damage assessments through satellite image analysis.
![UNICEF personnel load relief supplies into a truck heading to Jajarkot district. UNICEF personnel load relief supplies into a truck heading to Jajarkot district.](https://global.unitednations.entermediadb.net/assets/mediadb/services/module/asset/downloads/preset/Libraries/Production%20Library/04-11-2023-UNICEF-Nepal-UNI463750.jpg/image1170x530cropped.jpg)
© UNICEF
UNICEF personnel load relief supplies into a truck heading to Jajarkot district.
Access closed
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), access to Jajarkot is reportedly hampered by landslides caused by the earthquake. Efforts are being made to reopen the road.
Most damage so far has been reported in Jajarkot and Rukum (West). The government has deployed army helicopters for search and rescue operations and sent additional medical personnel to regional and field hospitals.
Immediate needs include medical support, trauma response, extracting people trapped under the rubble and evacuating affected people to safer locations. The approaching winter has underscored the critical need for warm clothing and shelter, health care and food.
Composite vulnerabilities
This is the largest earthquake to hit Nepal since the magnitude 7.3 earthquake in 2015, and it is the latest in a series of earthquakes to hit western Nepal in the past year.
“The impact of this latest earthquake thus increases the difficulties and vulnerabilities of communities still recovering from previous shocks in areas where low socio-economic indicators and extensive coping mechanisms were already prevalent,” OCHA said.