Last week we headed back to Sindapulchowk with more school supplies, but this time to check out a sub health post destroyed in the earthquake and that we have been asked to help rebuild.
The roads were horrendous, more mud and water than anything else thanks to the monsoon rains and persistent landslides. We failed to make it to the trailhead thanks to a huge boulder that slid down the hillside and blocked the road that morning.
The road to Baruwa
And the rock that blocked it!
Thankfully the phone network was working and we could get the villagers to come and meet us to help carry the supplies up to the school. It was a long 3-hour uphill hike on steep and narrow trails and we arrived just as it was getting dark and minutes before the heaven opened drowning everything in torrential rain. Tired and muddy after our long journey, we were treated to a wonderful hot and much needed meal of daal bhat, cooked in a communal kitchen created after the earthquake and used by 10 families. All in all 30 of us sat down to eat together in a festive and noisy atmosphere.
The communal kitchen, cooking daal bhat for 10 families
This time we brought school bags and material for new uniforms for all of the students at Shree Chandika Secondary School, Baruwa VDC. Originally there were 360 students attending the school, but since the earthquake only 150 have returned.
The HQ team sorting out the kid’s new bags while the tailor works on new uniforms
Local tailors are working hard taking measurements and sewing dress for all of the students and are hoping to be finished by the end of the week. The children were so happy and excited to receive their new bags and uniforms as they lost everything when their homes were destroyed.
Giving the school children their new school bags
Alongside organizing the school supplies, we also visited the local sub health post that was damaged. This health post services the 808 households of Baruwa VDC as well as the neighbouring village of Banskhara. Totally unusable, they are currently running the health post from a temporary shelter. We are now working on getting permission from the district health office for the rebuild and plan to start on the project once the monsoon is finished and access is easier.
What is left of the sub health post
Broken walls from April’s earthquake