Nepal: Race to harvest potatoes
For more than two weeks, Nepal residents have lived in fear that the earth beneath them would once again shake after a mighty earthquake hit west of Kathmandu last month
Their fears were realized Tuesday when a magnitude-7.3 quake hit east of the capital city, spreading devastation, claiming lives and hindering relief efforts across the South Asian country.
Locals and aid workers said they now must start over in some areas to provide basic shelter against a racing clock as Nepal’s monsoon season nears.Aid workers on their way back to Kathmandu clear a roadway blocked after the earthquake in Nepal on May 12, 2015.
Miguel Samper for Mercy CorpsTuesday’s quake, which killed and injured scores of people, also destroyed food stores and clean water supplies. Roads that were already in poor condition are now impassable, making it difficult to deliver aid relief to Nepal residents where the latest quake was centered.
The only international airport in Nepal was shut down again, which means aid shipments cannot land. A limited number of helicopters were available to distribute supplies to remote regions in the mountains.Locals have already returned to the fields to harvest potatoes and plant wheat crop ahead of the monsoon season that begins in June and ends in September.
But their concern more than anything is shelter, aid workers said. “Tarps are the number one requested material, more than food,” Delafield said.
Fuente: http://www.freshplaza.com/article/139749/Nepal-Race-to-harvest-potatoes
