On Saturday (25 April), Nepal was hit by one of the worst earthquakes in its history. International aid has now begun arriving. The Federal Foreign Office has provided 2.5 million euros in aid as part of Germany’s support. The German Embassy in Kathmandu is providing consular assistance to German citizens affected by the disaster.
Scenes of devastation can be found in many parts of Nepal: entire regions have been destroyed, while many mountain villages in the Himalayan country have been cut off from the outside world. The Nepalese capital Kathmandu and the densely populated Kathmandu Valley have been particularly severely affected by the disaster.
On Monday (27 April), the Nepalese authorities reported that over 3700 people had already been killed, while many more had been injured. Tens of thousands of people have lost their homes. The death toll is expected to climb, partly because aftershocks – some of them severe – are continuing.
The first relief flights are on their way to Nepal
Nepalese rescue workers have been searching for people buried under the rubble since the earthquake struck, and international aid has now also begun arriving. The Federal Foreign Office provided 2.5 million euros in humanitarian emergency aid at the weekend as part of Germany’s support. The first relief flights left Germany for Nepal on Sunday (26 April), just one day after the disaster.
On Monday, a German Red Cross and Federal Agency for Technical Relief flight funded by the Federal Foreign Office took off for Nepal. The aircraft is transporting tents, blankets and hygiene kits and an urgently needed water purification unit to the disaster zone.
The German Embassy is helping Germans affected by the disaster
The German Government’s crisis unit at the Federal Foreign Office has been coordinating Germany’s aid measures since the earthquake struck. Along with the German Embassy in Kathmandu, the crisis unit is also coordinating consular assistance for Germans affected by the disaster in Nepal. A crisis team from the German Embassy in New Delhi is on its way to Nepal to help Embassy staff in Kathmandu.
Around 50 German citizens and citizens of other countries have been given shelter on the grounds of the German Embassy. As far as possible, Germans and their families are being helped to fly out of Nepal on civilian aircraft. Embassy staff are working flat out to establish the whereabouts of German citizens.