Utilities
From: “Gas leak downtown causes evacuations”, Fredericksburg.com Two gas leaks that caused evacuations downtown yesterday were located and repaired early this morning by crews from Columbia Gas. Ruptures in the 8″ cast iron underground natural gas line were discovered near William St at Prince Edward St and near Amelia St at Prince Edward St. The repairs were […]
Emergency Management
From: “5.9-Magnitude Earthquake Strikes East Coast”, New York Times, Katharine Q. Seelye Fire alarms sounded throughout the downtown business district in Washington on an otherwise bright and sunny afternoon. Pennsylvania Avenue, from Capitol Hill to the White House, was filled with evacuated workers and tourists on Tuesday afternoon. There was no panic — or obvious reason to — […]
Social media mobilizes for homeless earthquake victims in Van
A campaign that journalist Ahmet Tezcan introduced on his Twitter account to provide accommodation for those who lost their homes to Sunday’s earthquake in Van has created a great impact on social media in Turkey, with many people seeking to lend help. After the earthquake struck the eastern province of Van on Sunday, many campaigns […]
Damage to schools threatens education system
The earthquakes in Nepal have caused server damage to educational infrastructure in Nepal. Wall collapse has been a common failure in smaller schools, and severe damage has even been reported in some newer construction. Even buildings at Kathmandu University have been found structurally unsound. It is expected to take at least two to three years before the […]
Schools Begin to Reopen
Figure 1. Courtesy BBC. According to the BBC, schools have begun to reopen in Nepal. Many are using rudimentary and temporary construction, such as bamboo and tarpaulins, but it’s an important step for the recovery of the country. Some estimates show 8,000 schools were closed in the immediate aftermath of the quake. Source From […]
Some schools attempting to charge parents for quake repairs
Several schools have been caught and reprimanded for attempting to get money from parents for repairing quake-damaged schools. Some notes on this article: 100 Nepali rupees = 1 US dollar; Nepal uses its own calendar with different months than the Gregorian calendar (Baisakh = mid-April-mid-May, Jeth = mid-May-mid-June). http://www.myrepublica.com/society/item/23230-schools-cornering-parents-for-quake-repair-funds.html Curated topics from the […]
Professor’s low-cost school retrofit appears to have worked
A structural engineering professor at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological Institute has been implementing a low-cost retrofit for schools in SE Asia. “In Nepal, for instance, six school buildings which had their beam and column structures wrapped with low-cost materials like wire mesh and glass fibre withstood April’s 7.8-magnitude earthquake. “Student Laxmi Thapa, 17, who studies at […]
Maps and Infographics of Earthquake Impact
Please see the link below for: Death toll by region Extent of outdoor shelters Mount Everest maps and diagrams Destruction estimates Aftershocks within various time-frames post-main event http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/04/25/world/asia/nepal-earthquake-maps.html Curated topics from the April 25, 2015, Nepal Earthquake to help inform reconnaissance activities, identify impacted regions, and help document the timeline of earthquake response/recovery. Information […]
Issues with Coordinating Aid Effort
In the days following the earthquake, the United States, China, and India began an aid effort in Nepal by organizing and sending search-and-rescue teams, foreign aid workers, and medical supplies to the country. A week after the earthquake, 16 countries have sent materials and supplies for aid relief. Organizations such as Unicef were prepared for the earthquake prior to […]
News Articles Related to Housing in Nepal
Housing in Kathmandu, in Rural Nepal, and Vulnerability of Housing Housing in KathmanduNepal Earthquake Death Toll Surpasses 7,000Estimates that 150,000 dwellings collapsed in Nepal, 175 residential buildings in central KathmanduNepal Death Toll exceeds 6,000Drone footage of damage in Kathmandu, NepalHouses fell ‘like a pack of cards’ as earthquake struck, says Nepal bishopBuildings in Kathmandu, […]