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Press Releases & Updates

27 APR 2015

Oxfam begins delivering aid to thousands of people affected by earthquake in Nepal

Oxfam teams are now in Kathmandu responding to Nepal’s most powerful earthquake in decades, which happened on Saturday, and are gearing up to deliver clean water and sanitation to thousands of people.

Some 30,000 people are currently living in makeshift shelters in 16 government camp locations, too scared to return to their homes for fear of the aftershocks. People in the affected region are still facing a lot of aftershocks; thousands have faced two nights outside, and it is expected that this will continue for a while.

The aftershocks and damaged roads and infrastructure are also making it extremely difficult to reach out to communities outside of the Nepalese capital. Telephone lines are down and the electricity and water supplies have been damaged. The number of people killed is continuing to rise; people need immediate access to adequate safe water, and sanitation facilities and food assistance and for Oxfam this is a top priority.

Cecilia Keizer, Oxfam country director in Nepal said, ‘We are managing to reach out to people in Kathmandu, but it is extremely difficult to provide support on a larger scale to the most affected areas - a lot of the main roads have been damaged. Our staff are still checking on their families and the partners we work with. At the moment, all the death count reports are coming from Kathmandu Valley. Sadly, I fear that this is only the beginning.’

Oxfam is working with UNICEF and will start building its first sanitation facilities in Tudikhel in Bhaktapur, serving 1,500 to 2,000 people in this location alone. Oxfam will also be completing its assessments in the Lalitpur camp soon.

It is vital that we prevent secondary disasters, including the outbreak of disease, by providing safe water and critical sanitation support. As such, Oxfam will continue to focus on providing water in camps, repair and fix existing water sources, install new pumps and wells, and promote hygiene. The initial response will target 10 per cent of the total affected population, which is 350,000 people both in Kathmandu and outside Kathmandu Valley.

The earthquake has also caused casualties and serious damage in Xigaze, Tibet Autonomous Region in China. We have sent a team from Gansu, China, together with our partner organisations to Tibet. They are now collecting information on the situation there.

Oxfam has been working in Nepal since the 1980s. We are now raising funds to respond to those affected by the devastating earthquake in the country. Oxfam Hong Kong plans to allocate HK$2 million to support disaster relief work.

Donation methods for Oxfam’s Nepal Earthquake Emergency Response are as follows:

Donations can be transferred to the various bank accounts of Oxfam Hong Kong:

Hong Kong

  • HSBC: 001-6-331860
  • Bank of China: 012-874-0-010515-7
  • Hang Seng Bank: 284-401080-003
  • OCBC Wing Hang Bank: 035-802-862123-001

Macau (MOP)

  • Bank of China Macau: 01-01-20-840951
  • OCBC Weng Hang: 743342-001
  • Banco Tai Fung: 201-1-10056-9
  • ICBC Macau: 0119100200005410616
  • BNU Macau: 9012625045

(Please send this form with the original bank receipt and write ‘Nepal Earthquake’ on the back)

Other donation methods:

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About Oxfam

Oxfam is a worldwide development organisation that mobilises the power of people against poverty.

For media enquiries, please contact:

Sarah Chu (Senior Communications Officer)
Telephone: + 852 3120 5280 / + 852 9276 0064
Email: sarah.chu@oxfam.org.hk

Clara Law (Assistant Communications Officer)
Telephone: + 852 3120 5272/ + 852 6088 8930
Email: clara.law@oxfam.org.hk