Nepal – Day 3

This morning after a reasonably good sleep on a solid floor, I headed for the shower only to get 1/2 way through and the water ran out… Lathered up with barely a dribble coming out of the faucet is not ideal but it just had to do. After getting washed up, dried and changed I joined the rest of the team for breakfast downstairs (still not quiet sure about the whole powdered milk thing).

Ralph, M J and I then prepared our packs etc. so that we could head out to Liwali which is home for 62 families who are internally displaced people (IDP’s). We were distributing quilts (shidicks), mosquito nets, toys, salt and cooking oil.

The villagers there were very appreciative of the help that the Salvation Mission is able to provide. An example of their hospitality was that we were not allowed to leave without sharing lunch with them.

The Salvation Army was a name used by a group many years ago which was more like a warring faction rather than a Christian organisation that helped people in their time of need. Although saying that The Salvation Army name is starting to be welcomed in many of the vulnerable communities.

One of the things that stood out for me in this community was that they were extremely hospitable and worked together for the betterment of each other. The decision while we were there was that the toys rather than being given out to children individually were to be placed in a games / entertainment room which all the children could then share. It was such a joy to see the smiles on the children’s faces and how they interacted with us and each other.

We then headed to Durbar Square in Bhaktapur to see one of the camps that has been set up next to this famous tourist attraction.

It was saddening to see the amount of damage to the buildings and statues that have stood their for many generations.

With all the damage though the people (locals and tourists) were still toing and froing and working in buildings that were supported by pieces of wood.

For many of the locals their livelihoods are tied up with the location so there are no other options to them than to just get on with it and accept the risk.

The camp itself has about 80 families in it and is mainly an older demographic. They had trouble with the recent rains and had one of the tents airing out because the water had come through and soaked everything. The first installment of tents are coming to the end of their life expectancy as many of them are now covered in mold which from time to time is having an affect on residents with the likes of asthma and other respiratory diseases.

Many of the camps are now using more medium term building materials such as corrugated iron (CGI) which is proving a bit more durable. However, depending on their construction may cause communal issues going forward.

The Durbar Square camp is situated right next to a school which itself was badly hit and this has meant that the camp has had to condense up living quarters to allow for more classrooms to be built. Again the people were extremely thankful for the generosity of The Salvation Army and are starting to be quite resourceful.

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Nepal – Day 2

After arriving into Kathmandu, getting my visa and clearing customs I was met by Major David Bennett who is the New Zealand, Fiji & Tonga (NZFT) Territorial Emergency Services Secretary, M J who is a member of the International Emergency Services (IES) Team from America & the local Corps Officer Sanga. After loading my bags into the car we braved the traffic in Kathmandu, although they appear to have lanes hardly anyone sticks to them and from time to time we were even driving on the other side of the road. It makes the traffic around the Arc de Triomphe tame in comparison.

Upon getting to base camp which is located on the top story of Sisters Cafe & Beauty, I got settled in and had lunch with the team leader Andrew from Australia. Sisters Cafe & Beauty provides young women with training and life skills development to increase their employability so that they don’t get lured into the sordid world of human trafficking. The rest of the team were out on assignment so I didn’t get to catch up with Ralph until later in the afternoon.

In the afternoon Ralph, M J & I along with our driver Vim headed to one of the camps in Sunakothi which was home to about 40 families until recently.

This camp is coordinated by a young woman called Renu who is a teacher and she has been encouraging families (especially the bread winners) to actively pursue employment and start rebuilding their homes so that they are prepared for the winter season which is fast approaching.

That evening after dinner I eventually crashed as the rest of the team organised a distribution of materials which is due to go tomorrow morning. It would appear that when discussions start about how we move supplies from one place to another it takes quite some time and we need to ensure that information doesn’t get lost in translation.

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Nepal – Day 1

Today I boarded the first of four flights to get me to Nepal. Leaving Invercargill airport @ 4:00pm to Christchurch, it was awesome to have a family gathered around praying for safe travels & protection for while I’m away.

In Christchurch I caught up briefly over a coffee with mum & Bill before leaving for Auckland.

When I got to Auckland I had to do all the normal international travelling booking in processes & I must take my hat off to both Air New Zealand & Malaysia Airlines as I had no worries with the excess luggage that I was carrying… Although getting the clearance prior to Invercargill was a different matter when it came to getting a figure on how much I was allowed from Malaysia Airlines head office – but all good on the day…

The flight from Auckland to Kuala Lumpur (KL) left @ just after midnight & was the longest flight of the four taking just about 12 hours. For much of this flight I tried to get as much sleep as I could as I would be arriving in KL first thing in the morning. Upon arriving in KL I caught the train from one side of the airport to the other which was a slight rush as I only had like 1/2 an hour, due to a slight delay leaving Auckland and longer than expected traveling time. However, the flight from KL to Kathmandu was not even boarding by the time I got to the gate, so all good!

During the flight from KL to Kathmandu I was able to be relocated to one of the exit rows which meant that I had plenty of room to spread out as I had no-one either side of me, which allowed me to re-read the Situational Reports that I’d been sent about the state of the nation, so to speak and make some notes.

Upon arriving in Kathmandu I took the following couple of photos from the plane. They don’t really give you a true picture of the devastation but they are a start.

Pretty much the first day has all been about the getting there, even though I have touched on the second day…

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Invercargill man to help in Nepal

The Southland Times reporter Hannah McLeod ran the following article on 27 August about my deployment to Nepal to help out with the earthquakes that have devastated parts of Kathmandu and the surrounding regions.

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John Hawkins/FAIRFAXNZ                                    Captain Perry Bray, Corps Officer for the Invercargill Salvation Army, will fly to Nepal on Thursday to help offer post-earthquake aid for 10 weeks.

Invercargill man Perry Bray has never owned so many pairs of khaki pants in his life, not to mention the 173 ponchos he has packed away. But he has them for good reason. on Thursday afternoon he will fly out from Invercargill on his way to Nepal to offer post-earthquake aid.

For 10 weeks, Invercargill Salvation Army Corps Officer Captain Bray will live in a tent and work with fellow New Zealand Salvation Army staff and other aid organisations to help the country move from emergency response mode into short and long-term recovery after the April and May earthquakes decimated villages and displaced thousands of people.

He received the call about his secondment on Thursday last week. “It’s a fantastic opportunity but it’s also daunting.”

Bray has some experience of emergency response work, having worked in Christchurch after the 2011 earthquakes. But Nepal offers a bigger challenge. The earthquakes killed more than 8000 people, 1.4 million people are in need of food, and 600,000 houses were destroyed. “At the moment it’s monsoon season [in Nepal], and it’s going to get harder and harder for the people there approaching winter.”

A 4.3 magnitude earthquake rattled the country as recently as last week, and volatile activity like landslides prevented supply trucks from reaching villages in desperate need in the mountainous areas, he said. “It’s a logistical nightmare, and the roading isn’t the best.”

Despite the difficulties he may face, Bray is looking forward to doing all he can, whatever that may be. His first stop will be Kathmandu.

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Captain answers call to head to Nepal

The following article was on the front page of the Southland Express on 27 August written by Allison Beckham.

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Packing: Invercargill Salvation Army Officer (minister) Captain Perry Bray checks his suitcase before heading to Nepal to join an international earthquake response team.

WHEN the request came last week, Invercargill Salvation Army officer (minister) Perry Bray could not say no. He had just a few days to pack before heading to Nepal today on a 10›week deployment with an inter› national earthquake response team.

Six Salvation Army personnel, including two New Zealanders, are assisting with a multi-agency response to help those left home-less and hungry after devastating earthquakes in April. Hundreds of thousands of people lost their homes, with entire villages flattened.

Mr Bray said the Salvation Army was managing six camps in the Kathmandu Valley, ensuring the safety of residents before they returned to their home communities. Within the first month more than 110,000kg of rice was distributed in the camps, along with items such as food, water, water filters, tarpaulins, tents, solar lamps, hygiene kits, and mosquito nets.

He said he would do whatever was required and expected to face some ‘‘interesting challenges’’. ‘‘It will be a different kettle of fish to what I am used to here…’’ He had been told to take a sleeping mat and sleeping bag so did not expect to be staying in a five star hotel.

Last year Mr Bray attended a conference in Sydney to learn more about the Sphere Project, which helps humanitarian agencies improve the quality of assistance and emergency response. While he had expected that would lead to being deployed somewhere in the world, he had not thought the call would come now, when the church locally was preparing to move from its Tay St base to a new home on Victoria Ave.

When asked to go to Nepal, he said his feelings were mixed, especially as it meant leaving his wife Captain Annette Bray to lead the relocation project. ‘‘On the one hand I thought okay great, this is what I have been trained to do and I’m able to assist where the need is greatest. On the other hand we have so much going on locally at the moment. But we have a good team around us locally to keep the ball moving.’’

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Nepal Deployment

This week I have received confirmation from The Salvation Army International Headquarters that I have been requested for a Nepal Deployment to assist with the on-going International Emergency Services Response.

In April of this year Nepal was rocked by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake that hit Nepal’s capital Kathmandu and it’s surrounding areas. The region has continued to be rocked by many more earthquakes, including one that measured 7.3 on 12 May. Almost 9,000 people have lost their lives (as of 3rd of June) and in excess of 22,000 people have been injured. Hundreds of thousands of people have been made homeless with entire villages flattened across many districts of the country.

Figures provided in June showed that The Salvation Army’s International Emergency Services team in Nepal had distributed more than 110,000 kilogrammes of rice, almost 36,000 kg of dhal, 7,000 litres of oil, 2,650 kg of salt, more than 2,000 packets of noodles and in excess of 2,300 litres of water. The team had also provided 10 water filters, four water tanks, almost 3,000 tarpaulins for shelter, 904 solar lamps, 33 solar chargers, 775 jerry cans, 440 hygiene kits, 800 school kits and a large number of small items including mosquito nets. They were also in the process of distributing 1,000 high-quality tents that had arrived from Pakistan.

The Salvation Army continues to manage six camps in the Kathmandu valley, ensuring the safety of residents before they return to their home communities.

Major David Bennett and Captain Ralph Hargest from the New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga Territory have been serving in Nepal since June and I will be heading over next Thursday to be part of The Salvation Army’s international disaster relief team.

I will be endeavouring to update my personal blog as often as I can, but you can check out the following links to see what The Salvation Army Emergency Response Team in Nepal is doing to assist those most in need. The Salvation Army’s Response to the Nepal Earthquake Updates. To make a donation to help with the on-going international response click here or on the image to the left.

Check out the map on this page and get more information about where The Salvation Army Emergency Services are at work around the world.

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