尼泊爾大地震Earthquake in Nepal

翰林外師：Jason Demorest

Life in Nepal that morning was normal. People were going about their daily lives just like every other day, but that all changed at 11:57 am. Just like scenes from a doomsday action movie: houses shook and crumbled down, four UNESCO temple sites fell down while tourists stared in terrified awe; one person that was driving even said that their car bounced up on to two wheels before slamming back down. This was a waking nightmare that no one could do anything about. A date that won’t soon be forgotten by Nepal. This was April 25, 2015.

As of May 3, the Nepalese government has said there were 7,040 deaths and 15,317 people injured by the earthquake. More than 130,000 homes were destroyed, leaving 3 million people without food, proper shelter or clean places to clean or drink water from. Among those 3 million, there are over 260,000 children homeless and hungry.

Often after something terrible happens, people want to know what we could have done before it happened and what we can do to prepare better if it happens again. Experts have for a long time been studying how to prepare for a large scale earthquake in Nepal. But even with relief supplies set up beforehand, the emergency clinics, shelters, and water services were not enough to help the nearly 3 million people that have been forced to leave their homes. The most terrifying thing is that without proper help, people fear it could get much worse.

Knowing this, relief workers from countries all around the world are working as hard as they can and many countries are sending donations. The largest donation comes from the UN. They are donating $15 million from their emergency security fund, plus another $415 million to help provide food, medical help, water, sanitation, shelter, living essentials, educational resources and safe centers for children, among a number of other services. The difficulty is setting all these things up as soon as possible for all the people affected.

Heavy rains could come within two weeks, bringing floods, and landslides. Without safe places to live, clean water and food, the number of deaths could double or even triple due to the spread of disease. With everyone trying to find safety, the country is still under fear of more large earthquakes. From April 25 to May 2, there were 82 aftershocks between 3.0 and 6.9 on the Richter Scale. People are tired, scared and to make things worse the United States Geological Services expects more and more severe aftershocks all the way into 2016.

Amidst all the heartache, there are some moments that stick with people. One example of that is the story of four month old Sonit Awal. Moments prior to the earthquake, he was outside with his nine year old sister. Moments later, Sonit was buried under a wooden beam while his older sister screamed for passengers to help. People rushed to the scene and rescue workers worked hard at saving the baby. Everyone on the street hoped and prayed as the workers uncovered the baby with its hands covering its face, covered in dust from the concrete, and a small cut above his eyebrows. People around the world seeing pictures on TV and the internet held out hope for the baby. Five days after the earthquake, pictures on the internet came out of a smiling happy baby in his mom’s arms. These kinds of stories make you realize how important the work is that relief workers do. 

If you are looking to help, USAID suggests sending cash donations so aid workers can use the money to buy the exact necessities. There is the worry that towels, tents, clothes and other donations that require trucks driving into Nepal will make it that much more difficult for relief workers and doctors that need to travel into or out of the country.

If you are interested in keeping up to date with the most recent news about the earthquake disaster in Nepal, you can follow #Nepalearthquake on Twitter. To see just how bad the earthquake was you can check out video footage of the earthquake hitting one of the four UNESCO ancient temples sites at http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-32541418?ocid=socialflow_twitter.

Vocabulary

Doomsday (n.) 世界末日	crumble (v.) 粉碎	terrified (adj.) 驚恐的	awe (n.) 畏怯	nightmare (n.) 惡夢
beforehand (adv.) 預先	sanitation (n.) 衛生設備	essential (n.) 必需品	concrete (n.) 混泥土	necessities (n.) 必要品

Practice

1 ) How many aftershocks have there been from April 25 – May 2?

a)     35

b)     55

c)     82

2) What do USAID suggest people send as donations?

            a) blankets

            b) food

            c) cash

3) What have you heard about the disaster in Nepal?

解答: C, C