Government of Nepal Ministry of Home Affairs Nepal Disaster Report 2015 Avalanche from Gangapurna Himal in Manang. Cover Photo by: eKantipur 2 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 3 Government of Nepal Ministry of Home Affairs Nepal Disaster Report 2015 2 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 3 Nepal Disaster Report 2015 Published by The Government of Nepal, Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA) and Disaster Preparedness Network-Nepal (DPNet-Nepal) Any part of this publication may be cited, copied, translated in other languages or adopted to meet local needs with prior permission from MoHA and DPNet-Nepal. ©2015 MoHA & DPNet-Nepal. All rights reserved. The opinion expressed by the individual authors in this report does not represent or reflect the official position and policy of publishers. Authors have the sole responsibility for their expression. ISBN No. : 978-9937-0-0324-7 Contact: Disaster Preparedness Network-Nepal (DPNet-Nepal) Nepal Red Cross Building Kalimati, Kathmandu, Nepal Phone : +977-1-4672165, 016226613 Fax : +977-1-4672165 Email : [email protected] Website : www.dpnet.org.np Designed and printed at : Format Printing Press 4 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 5 Advisory Board: Narayan Gopal Malego, Secretary, MoHA Bishal Nath Upreti, Chairperson, DPNet-Nepal Chief Editor: Rameshwor Dangal, Joint Secretary, Disaster Management Division, MoHA Executive Editor: Deepak Paudel Editorial Board: Pradip Kumar Koirala Bhubaneswori Parajuli Surya Bahadur Thapa Hari Darsan Shrestha Rita Dhakal Jayasawal Prakash Aryal Ram Raj Narasimhan Bishnu Prasad Kharel Major Data Source: MoHA 4 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 5 6 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 7 Foreword Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA) has been publishing Nepal Disaster Report (NDR) since 2009 in every two years of interval. Corresponding to the previous three issues of the report, NDR 2015 is mainly focused on the disaster data and information collected by MoHA for the years 2013 and 2014. It is expected that the presentation and findings of this report would be of benefit to all the actors and stakeholders associated with disaster management at various levels such as: the policy makers, academia, administrators, disaster managers, researchers, donors and international and regional organizations for DRR initiatives. It is well-known that developing countries like Nepal face increased disaster risks from a full range of known and previously unknown hazards. Thus, disaster consequences are having greater adverse effects on populations, built structures, the livelihood and environments. However, preparedness and mitigation measures reduce vulnerability to disasters and minimize the loss of lives and properties. Even with the best mitigation, preparedness and response planning, there may be some level of damage in environment, properties and infrastructures. Moreover, disruption of socio-economic condition and negative physical, psychological and health consequences may also occur. To address the disaster management cycle, the Government of Nepal has formulated and established various legislations and institutions. Despite of such efforts, sometimes the fury of unkind nature or human negligence results into disastrous events that overwhelm not only the local community’s response capacities but also the response capacities of the whole country or countries. Gorkha Earthquake 2015 is the prominent example of such condition. In view of the above situation, Nepal Government needs to review and formulate proactive policies, legislations and institutions to take effective action to prepare for and mitigate the effects of natural and human induced hazards. This report is the joint effort of the officials of MoHA and disaster management professionals. We recognize the secretarial support extended by Disaster Preparedness Network-Nepal (DPNet- Nepal) in preparing this report. Our sincere thanks go to the Editorial Board members and MoHA officials at Disaster Management Division for their time and efforts in the preparation of this report. This report also encompasses articles from the leading DRR professionals. Information available from other reliable government, inter-government and non-government sources has also been incorporated to make it more informative. Finally, we would like to thank all DRR stakeholders for their continuous support and cooperation to bring out this Nepal Disaster Report 2015. Thank you. (Narayan Gopal Malego) Secretary Kathmandu December 2015 6 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 7v 8 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 9 Acknowledgements Under the leadership of Ministry of Home Affairs and the coordination from DPNet- Nepal, the Nepal Disaster Report (NDR) is being produced since 2009. In the series of publication of 2011 and 2013, the report of 2015 is the update of the national disaster data and information of the years 2013 and 2014. I am highly grateful to Mr. Surya P Silwal, the then Home Secretary and Mr. Narayan Gopal Malego, Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs for their advice and guidance in preparing this report. I would also like to admire Joint Secretary Mr. Rameswor Dangal, Under Secretaries Mr. Pradip Kumar Koirala and Mr. Baburam Bhandari and other officials of MoHA for their continuous cooperation and great care in course of the preparation of this report. Similarly, I would like to thank the UN agencies, national and international non- government organizations for the help provided to produce this report. Likewise, I would like to express my sincere appreciation to all DRR partners, experts, professionals and particularly the author of the articles who have extended great help in the preparation of this report. I duly acknowledge the contribution of all other organizations and individuals who have directly and indirectly contributed to shape this report. I am deeply obliged to the Advisory Board and Editorial Board for their valuable guidance and constructive feedback at various stages of the preparation of this report. The support of DPNet-Nepal Executive Committee members and DPNet-Nepal Secretariat is also highly appreciated for their assistance provided in course of the preparation of this report. Last but not the least, I acknowledge and highly appreciate the hard work of the Consultant Dr. Meen B. Poudyal Chhetri on this report. He has shown high professionalism and technical standards to come-up with this report. This is our firm belief that NDR 2015 will be a very important and basic reference material for the readers. (Bishal Nath Upreti) Chairperson DPNet-Nepal 8 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 vii9 10 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 11 Editorial Since the time immemorial, Nepal is witnessing increasing numbers of casualties and damages due to various types of natural and human induced disasters such as floods, landslides, fires, epidemics, GLOFs, thunderbolts, earthquake and so on. This makes Nepal as one of the most disaster prone countries in the world. Among them epidemics, floods, landslides, fires are the recurrent phenomena and earthquake is the most intensive disaster. All these disasters kill hundreds of people and cause heavy damage to physical properties worth millions of rupees every year. Gorkha Earthquake 2015 alone killed nearly nine thousand people and caused economic loss equivalent to seven billion dollars. Disasters affect not only the people; they also set back the overall economic development of the country. Thus, the socio-economic costs of such disasters have long-term repercussions on local communities and on the entire country. Traditionally, we look at disasters mainly from a humanitarian perspective and give priority to immediate rescue and relief works. Now, it is high time to take preparedness actions and build a culture of resilience -- so that we may save more lives and properties. In the same way, we should continue improving and strengthening our capacity in mitigation, preparedness, response, recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction in collaboration with local, national, regional and international organizations to reduce our vulnerability to disasters. This Report is an overview of disasters and their impacts in Nepal during the years 2013 and 2014. This report also provides insight into policy and institutional responses. The need and importance of community resilience is also briefly discussed. In addition to this, professional articles on various aspects of disaster management have also been incorporated in this report. In some cases data and information were limited. The scope of the report is focused to the works led or carried out directly by the Government entities. So we realize that there are still avenues for improvement in data presentation and interpretation. We welcome constructive comments and feedbacks from the readers which would be useful for the forthcoming disaster reports. We hope, this report may serve as a guide and reference for the government and non- government sectors, students, researchers, practitioners and anyone interested in disaster management. Rameshwor Dangal Editor in Chief Joint Secretary, MoHA 10 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 NEPAL DISASTER REPORT 2015 11ix Abbreviations and Acronyms AEM Australian Emergency Management APF Armed Police Force BBB Build Back Better CBS Central Bureau of Statistics CCA Climate Change Adaptation CBDP Community Based Disaster Preparedness CBEWS Community