Response for Jajarkot Earthquake

SONA Newsletter Vol.17

In early November 2023, two powerful earthquakes struck Nepal’s western Jajarkot district, killing more than 150 people and injuring close to 400. More than 250,000 people were left in need of humanitarian assistance. In the most affected area, more than half of the buildings were damaged. While the government and other agencies were taking care of relief materials food and necessities, SONA decided to contribute as a technical force.

 

 The first step for the response was the documentation of the local architecture of the affected region so that during the reconstruction phase, the original fabric would not get lost. A team of two experienced architects visited the region and got the on-site information on behalf of SONA. The team visited the epicenter of the Jajarkot Earthquake, situated in Ramidanda of Barekot Rural Municipality, from November 7th to 12th. It took an eight-hour drive from Surkhet to Barekot Rural Municipality, crossing four rivers on the way, and then a one-hour drive to Sirpachaur. The objective of the visit was to check the situation of the earthquake-damaged houses and study the vernacular architecture of the settlement.

On the way to Barekot, some houses had fully collapsed in the Nalgadh area. In the market center of Barekot, Limsi, the houses had major cracks on the outside and inside but had not fully collapsed. However, the houses near the epicenter were still standing. the exterior of those houses showed cracks, while on the inside, there were several joint failures in walls, which made all the houses inhabitable. The people were staying in temporary shelters. They still had their food grains inside the houses, so access to food was difficult initially. The people were receiving support from NGOs like Taranga Nepal and LWR for temporary shelters.

Vernacular Architecture

Most of the houses in Limsa, Rami Danda and Silpa Chaur were constructed with Stone Walls with Mud Mortar covered with Mud Plaster or Cement Sand Plaster. Almost all the houses had two-way slope slate roofs with struts, and some had CGI sheets as roofing material. A few houses had an RCC Frame structure. A new design, which featured a combination of an RCC Column, band, and stone masonry, was observed in Silpa Chaur. Almost all the houses were two-storeys with attics. The ground floor was for the cattle shed, the first floor was for the bedrooms and kitchen, and the second floor was for the attic functioning as stores. The design of houses was linked with their livelihood and their family size.

Situation after the 2072 Earthquake

The Tranche Deadline rushed the people to construct houses quickly. Since the limit of a stone building with mud mortar technology was one story in this context, small one-room houses were constructed just to receive the tranche. One important thing learned from the 2072 Earthquakes is that the houses must be linked to their livelihood, and the design must address their requirements.

What Next?

The designs must include houses with vernacular technology that can be built with the available resources. The standing houses must be checked for retrofitting while aiming to preserve the aesthetics. Additionally, vernacular architecture must be preserved to address livelihood and promote the tourism prospects of areas like Sirpachaur.

Commitment from SONA

SONA had made commitments to coordinate with Donors and INGOs to provide technical support to the houses to be reconstructed while also providing architects in the field to understand the requirements and livelihood and design accordingly. SONA also proposed collaboration with other organizations like NEA, SEANep, and NGS to prepare designs that would support local technology.