AFP
A decade has passed since a massive earthquake ripped through Nepal, but in Ram Bahadur Nakarmi's home the damage is still visible -- and so is the fear another might strike.
Ten years ago, on April 25, 2015, the ground beneath Nepal shuddered with a magnitude-7.8 earthquake, killing nearly 9,000 people, injuring over 22,000, and leaving millions homeless.
The disaster also reduced monuments to ruins, including centuries-old temples and royal palaces in the Kathmandu valley that attracted visitors from around the world.
Nakarmi's four-storey home in historic Bhaktapur city was damaged, but financial constraints made it impossible for him to rebuild.
The 61-year-old continues to live in his house despite the cracks.
"Even now, it is still scary," Nakarmi told AFP. "We are still feeling the tremors and they terrify us -- we run outside the house".
The aftermath of the quake exposed deep cracks in Nepal's disaster response system and the rebuilding efforts were initially hit by political infighting, bureaucracy and confusion.
Yet over the last decade, significant progress have been made.
According to official figures, nearly 90 percent of the homes destroyed have been rebuilt, alongside thousands of schools, health institutions, and public buildings.
Temples and cultural landmarks are also slowly rising again.
A joint assessment of affected districts by Nepal's National Society for Earthquake Technology, and the international Global Quake Model showed marked improvements for resilience in the face of another quake.
They estimated there had been a 44 percent reduction in the number of buildings at risk of complete collapse, after Nepal's rebuilding and retrofitting drive.
"Our initial years were focused on rebuilding. Now our focus should be in areas which were not affected in 2015 but are at risk of a quake," Dinesh Prasad Bhatt chief of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA), told AFP.
"We have to extend the reach of lessons learnt from the earthquake to all parts of the country."
Ten years ago, on April 25, 2015, the ground beneath Nepal shuddered with a magnitude-7.8 earthquake, killing nearly 9,000 people, injuring over 22,000, and leaving millions homeless.
The disaster also reduced monuments to ruins, including centuries-old temples and royal palaces in the Kathmandu valley that attracted visitors from around the world.
Nakarmi's four-storey home in historic Bhaktapur city was damaged, but financial constraints made it impossible for him to rebuild.
The 61-year-old continues to live in his house despite the cracks.
"Even now, it is still scary," Nakarmi told AFP. "We are still feeling the tremors and they terrify us -- we run outside the house".
The aftermath of the quake exposed deep cracks in Nepal's disaster response system and the rebuilding efforts were initially hit by political infighting, bureaucracy and confusion.
Yet over the last decade, significant progress have been made.
According to official figures, nearly 90 percent of the homes destroyed have been rebuilt, alongside thousands of schools, health institutions, and public buildings.
Temples and cultural landmarks are also slowly rising again.
A joint assessment of affected districts by Nepal's National Society for Earthquake Technology, and the international Global Quake Model showed marked improvements for resilience in the face of another quake.
They estimated there had been a 44 percent reduction in the number of buildings at risk of complete collapse, after Nepal's rebuilding and retrofitting drive.
"Our initial years were focused on rebuilding. Now our focus should be in areas which were not affected in 2015 but are at risk of a quake," Dinesh Prasad Bhatt chief of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA), told AFP.
"We have to extend the reach of lessons learnt from the earthquake to all parts of the country."
