Life and Death in One Picture After Quake Hits Nepal

2 minute read

The house built atop a hill in Swyambhu, a neighborhood west of Kathmandu’s city center, stood at three levels before Saturday. But it couldn’t resist the wrath of the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck outside of Nepal’s capital, killing more than 4,000 people and becoming the country’s worst quake in more than 80 years.

The earthquake flattened parts of the house, trapping two men side-by-side—one dead, the other alive—for more than 18 hours. Prakash Mathema, an Agence France-Presse photographer based in Kathmandu, was documenting the recovery efforts across the ravaged city when he heard that a rescue team had found the men.

“The top floor of the house had collapsed,” he told TIME on Sunday. “And the men were trapped by this beam.”

The house had been cordoned off, but Mathema requested access, aware of the risks. He entered by a window and shadowed rescuers as they worked to free the man who survived, identified as Saroj Shrestha. “It lasted seven to eight minutes,” he said.

Shrestha is now in a hospital with a broken leg, Mathema said. “I want to visit him,” he added, “but right now I have to document the rescue operations. I think it’s important [to show] what’s happening, what’s going on. There are a lot of places [in Kathmandu] where this has happened—people trapped in their houses. No one knows how many people are out there, [still alive] after 18 hours. The manpower is limited.”

Read next: The Story Behind the Photos of Nepal’s Devastating Earthquake

See Photos From a Survivor of the Mount Everest Avalanche

A cloud of snow and debris triggered by an earthquake flies towards Everest Base Camp, moments before parts of the camp were flattened, in the Himalayas, Nepal, on April 25, 2015.
A cloud of snow and debris triggered by an earthquake flies towards Everest Base Camp, moments before parts of the camp were flattened, in the Himalayas, Nepal, on April 25, 2015.Roberto Schmidt—AFP/Getty Images
The avalanche, triggered by an earthquake outside Kathmandu, Nepal, flattened parts of Everest Base Camp on April, 25, 2015.
The avalanche, triggered by an earthquake outside Kathmandu, Nepal, flattened parts of Everest Base Camp on April, 25, 2015.Roberto Schmidt—AFP/Getty Images
Rescuers help a porter onto a makeshift stretcher after he was injured by the avalanche on Mount Everest, triggered by an earthquake outside Kathmandu, Nepal.
Rescuers help a porter onto a makeshift stretcher after he was injured by the avalanche on Mount Everest, triggered by an earthquake outside Kathmandu, Nepal.Roberto Schmidt—AFP/Getty Images
Mount Everest Avalanche Photos
Rescuers assist an injured person at Everest Base Camp after an avalanche was triggered by an earthquake outside Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 25, 2015.Roberto Schmidt—AFP/Getty Images
Mount Everest Avalanche Photos
Rescuers look for survivors after the avalanche that was triggered by an earthquake outside Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 25, 2015.Roberto Schmidt—AFP/Getty Images
Mount Everest Avalanche Photos
Rescuers tend to an injured sherpa after the avalanche that was triggered by an earthquake outside Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 25, 2015.Roberto Schmidt—AFP/Getty Images
Mount Everest Avalanche Photos
Rescuers carry an injured sherpa after the avalanche that was triggered by an earthquake outside Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 25, 2015.Roberto Schmidt—AFP/Getty Images
A person injured in Saturday's avalanche is carried by rescue members to be airlifted by a rescue helicopter at Everest Base Camp on April 26, 2015.
A person injured in Saturday's avalanche is carried by rescue members to be airlifted by a rescue helicopter at Everest Base Camp on April 26, 2015.Roberto Schmidt—AFP/Getty Images
An injured person is loaded onto a rescue helicopter at Everest Base Camp on April 26, 2015.
An injured person is loaded onto a rescue helicopter at Everest Base Camp on April 26, 2015.Roberto Schmidt—AFP/Getty Images
Prayer flags frame a rescue helicopter as it ferries the injured from Everest Base Camp on April 26, 2015, one day after an avalanche triggered by an earthquake outside Kathmandu, Nepal.
Prayer flags frame a rescue helicopter as it ferries the injured from Everest Base Camp on April 26, 2015, one day after an avalanche triggered by an earthquake outside Kathmandu, Nepal.Roberto Schmidt—AFP/Getty Images

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