The cramped, maze-like streets of central Kathmandu are full of ‘kissing houses’ – a local name for buildings that lean into each other.
Some are six, seven or even eight storeys high. And when a major earthquake hits the city, a huge number will collapse with devastating consequences.
That’s why the Nepalese Red Cross is working to help local people prepare for disaster.
Narrow tunnels and crumbling buildings
Nepal’s National Society for Earthquake Technology estimates that a large-scale earthquake in mid-Nepal would displace over 1.8 million people, kill over 100,000 and injure a further 300,000.
Many of these deaths and injuries will happen in places such as District 27, a tightly-packed neighbourhood in the heart of Kathmandu.
The area’s unpaved streets are similar to a host of others in the busy city – thronging with people, including stallholders, motorcyclists and immaculately dressed schoolchildren.
The buildings that loom over its roads and alleyways are a haphazard mix of wood, brick and concrete. But building regulations are rarely enforced, and many of these homes are poorly made. Some rest against their neighbours, some are held up with wooden props and the masonry in others is crumbling away.
Most of the buildings are owned by people who live elsewhere, and so have less incentive to make them safe. The neighbourhood is also home to paused construction sites – skeletons of buildings, unfinished but not sealed off.
Some of the buildings are connected by narrow tunnels about 1m high and 2m wide, impossible to walk through without crouching, that open into cramped courtyards permanently in the shadow of yet more tall buildings.
Thick bundles of power cables trail between them, sometimes at head height. Fire will be a major risk after an earthquake, and when the cramped roads are blocked with debris it will be difficult for people to escape – or help to arrive.
One tunnel is the only route in and out of a school that teaches about 400 children. It is hard to imagine the panic and chaos that would unfold there in the aftermath of an earthquake.
Building a safer District 27
NRCS volunteers including Sangita Maharjan, a community mobiliser, are warning people in District 27 about the dangers of earthquakes – and helping them take action before the disaster strikes.
She goes from door to door telling residents how to get ready for and survive such a disaster. This includes advice on preparing a go bag with essential items that will be vital in the aftermath of the disaster, and reminders to secure loose objects on walls and ledges.
Sangita also tells people to follow a simple drop, cover, and hold routine when the earthquakes happens.
The earthquake preparedness programme, which is supported by the British Red Cross, also helps people build safer homes and trains local volunteers in first aid and search and rescue skills.
Preparing for an earthquake is often a low priority for people living in poverty, so it’s vital the Red Cross helps the residents of District 27 get ready for such an emergency.
Sangita says: “People only think about how to make money and survive – not how to prepare for disasters.”