Nepal: Scientifiques à la rescousse / Nepal earthquake urgent appeal

Un géologue avec qui un professeur du centre ETE a travaillé et co-dirigé des étudiants sur la recherche dans les Himalayas vient de nous envoyer ce courriel.

Nepal earthquake urgent appeal

Please visit this link: http://www.queensu.ca/geol/node/328

The 7.8 magnitude Nepal earthquake on 25th April 2015 resulted in more than 7,800 casualties and injured thousands more. Two weeks later, a 7.3 magnitude earthquake shook the region again. Tens of thousands of houses have been demolished and assistance is immediately needed for 400,000 families. The UN estimates that as many as eight million people have been affected. Some of the most severe damage occurred in rural villages of Sindupalchowk district north of Kathmandu (where over 2,000 people have perished). Some of these villages have been completely destroyed. The monsoon rains will arrive in June, so the most pressing need for the survivors is access to shelter and food.

For more than 20 years, the Queen’s Tectonics Research Laboratory and its affiliates have relied on Nepali people from the Khumbu district (Lapcha and Kerung villages) to conduct research in the Himalaya. My graduate students and I have spent many months in the Himalayan mountains studying the geology and mountain-building faults. The April 25 and May 12 earthquakes that devastated Nepal were the result of motion on one of these faults. Two of my graduate students were in Kathmandu at the time of the first earthquake. They survived unharmed and are now back safely on campus. (see https://eos.org/articles/scientists-field-season-ends-with-nepal-quake). None of our research would have been possible without the dedication of our guides, Dawa and Pradap Tamang, and their friendly crew.

Luckily, all our Nepali friends are ok, and were initially eager to use their trekking skills and camping equipment to move into the remote villages of Sindupalchowk to assist in rebuilding and bring much needed food and clothing. Unfortunately, Dawa and Pradap’s villages (including their own homes) have been damaged or completely destroyed by the second quake and are now, themselves, in great need This appeal is for donated funds that will ALL go toward the people and reconstruction of Lapcha and Kerung. Urgent support is needed for the survivors. All funds will be transferred into a special bank account in Kathmandu set up solely for earthquake relief. We will transfer funds at regular intervals and will keep everyone updated through regular newsletters and photos showing how the money is being spent. Any donations can be sent directly to me (via email transfer, cheque, cash, or credit card via Paypal). Follow this link for more info: http://www.queensu.ca/geol/node/328

The survivors of Nepal thank you for your support.

Sincerely,

Laurent Godin & the Queen’s Tectonics Research Laboratory PS. Please do not hesitate to pass this email along.

____________________________________________

Laurent Godin, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Structural Geology & Tectonics
Geological Sciences & Geological Engineering
Queen's University Kingston, Ontario K7L 3N6, CANADA

PS: Si certains d'entre vous souhaitez plutôt donner à des ONG, www.redcross.ca/nepal‎

Photo: Steve Evans, Citizen of the World (1003 Bhutan) [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons