The district of Jhapa has been severely affected by the disaster, with over 5,000 families forced to leave their homes. Here, FAIRMED worked with the government to provide aid packages for 300 families. The aid packages contained essential food items such as rice, lentils, salt, cooking oil, and potatoes, as well as blankets, mattresses, mosquito nets, and soap. We also ensured that 2,500 water purification tablets were distributed to the communities affected by the floods in Jhapa. In cooperation with the health department, we are delivering a further 2,100 of these tablets and 6,500 bars of soap to the districts of Sarlahi and Rautahat.
These measures aim to ensure access to clean drinking water and prevent the outbreak of waterborne diseases such as diarrhea, cholera, and typhoid, which often occur after floods. Priority was given to high-risk areas where water sources were contaminated or damaged and the environment was polluted by the floods.
Prevention of disease outbreaks
In order to reinforce these measures at the community level and promote safe hygiene practices in the areas affected by flooding, FAIRMED also supported a workshop on water, sanitation, and hygiene for 26 female health workers and 32 health professionals in Jhapa. This focused on proper handwashing practices, the correct use of water purification tablets, and the prevention of diarrheal diseases and mosquito-borne diseases. We also plan to support such workshops in other affected communities.
Entire streets destroyed
The rainfall not only destroyed entire villages, but also important main traffic routes, making access to remote areas difficult. The army and police worked together with rescue workers to bring those affected to safe areas. Helicopters flew out injured people who needed urgent medical attention.