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Why Nepal Wasn’t Ready for the Earthquake

5 minute read

The shock of the past few days in Nepal gave way to despair, frustration and a few larger questions on Tuesday, as the death toll from the devastating earthquake that wracked the small Himalayan nation over the weekend rose above 4,000 — a number that will almost certainly rise once international rescue teams reach rubble-filled outlying areas surrounding the capital, Kathmandu.

The massive quake, measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale and followed by three days of panic-inducing aftershocks, has left the country — already one of the world’s poorest and least developed — reeling and utterly helpless.

But while the earthquake is tragic, seismologists said it didn’t come as a surprise. Nepal’s location on a fault line and a lack of emergency resources made a devastating earthquake inevitable, heightening a sense that more should have been done to make typically ramshackle local buildings more resilient, and so saving countless lives.

“It was no surprise whatsoever. This is the earthquake we’ve been waiting for,” Susan Hough, a seismologist at the U.S. Geological Survey, tells TIME. “People have been talking about a magnitude 8-ish earthquake hitting Nepal pretty much exactly like this one did. What surprises me is how many buildings are still standing.”

Death Toll Climbs as Nepal Digs Out After Massive Quake

Death toll passes 2,300 as major aftershocks continue to rock Nepal
A monk inspects the damage at Nepalese heritage site Syambhunaath Stupa, also known as monkey temple, after a powerful earthquake struck Nepal, in Kathmandu on April 26, 2015. Narendra Shrestha—EPA
Rescue workers remove debris as they search for victims of earthquake in Bhaktapur near Kathmandu on April 26, 2015.
Rescue workers remove debris as they search for victims of earthquake in Bhaktapur near Kathmandu on April 26, 2015. Niranjan Shrestha—AP
Nepalese policemen clear the debris at Basantapur Durbar Square, damaged in Saturday's earthquake, in Kathmandu on April 26, 2015.
Nepalese policemen clear the debris at Basantapur Durbar Square, damaged in Saturday's earthquake, in Kathmandu on April 26, 2015.Bernat Armangue—AP
Nepalese rescue personnel help a trapped earthquake survivor, center right, as his friend lies dead next to him in Swyambhu, in Kathmandu on April 26, 2015.
Nepalese rescue personnel help a trapped earthquake survivor, center right, as his friend lies dead next to him in Swayambhu, in Kathmandu on April 26, 2015.Prakash Mathema—AFP/Getty Images
Injured people receive treatment at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, on April 26, 2015, one day after a massive earthquake hit Nepal.
Injured people receive treatment at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, on April 26, 2015, one day after a massive earthquake hit Nepal.Kishor Sharma for TIME
Bodies kept for identification at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, on April 26, 2015.
Bodies kept for identification at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital in Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, on April 26, 2015.Kishor Sharma for TIME
A woman weeps during the cremation of a victim of Saturdayís earthquake, at the Pashupatinath temple, on the banks of Bagmati river, in Kathmandu on April 26, 2015.
A woman weeps during the cremation of a victim of Saturday's earthquake, at the Pashupatinath temple, on the banks of Bagmati river, in Kathmandu on April 26, 2015.Bernat Armangue—AP
Flames rise from burning funeral pyres during the cremation of victims of Saturday's earthquake, at the Pashupatinath temple on the banks of Bagmati river, in Kathmandu on April 26, 2015.
Flames rise from burning funeral pyres during the cremation of victims of Saturday's earthquake, at the Pashupatinath temple on the banks of Bagmati river, in Kathmandu on April 26, 2015.Bernat Armangue—AP
People search for family members trapped inside collapsed houses a day after an earthquake in People search for family members trapped inside collapsed houses a day after an earthquake in Bhaktapur on April 26, 2015.
People search for family members trapped inside collapsed houses a day after an earthquake in Bhaktapur, Nepal on April 26, 2015.Navesh Chitrakar—Reuters
People at the site of the collapsed Dharahara Tower, which fell in the earthquake that hit outside Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 25, 2015.
People at the site of the collapsed Dharahara Tower, which fell in the earthquake that hit outside Kathmandu on April 25, 2015.Kishor Sharma for TIME
People gathered at Tundikhel, an open ground in central Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 25, 2015. Many families spent their nights there in fear of aftershocks.
People gathered at Tundikhel, an open ground in central Kathmandu on April 25, 2015. Many families spent their nights there in fear of aftershocks.Kishor Sharma for TIME

Nepal, nestled in the midst of the Himalayas and on a fault line between the Eurasian and South Asian tectonic plates, has long been on experts’ radar as a high-risk region that lacks the wherewithal to protect its 30 million people.

The country has a per capita GDP under $1,000, and homeowners often construct their own buildings without any oversight from trained engineers. Government officials imposed a new building code in 1994, six years after an earthquake there killed 700 people, but lack the resources, or will, to enforce it strictly. The government also attempted to implement a 1998 action plan formulated by disaster-management organizations GeoHazards International and the National Society for Earthquake Technology–Nepal, but was unable to adequately shore up its defenses.

“People have been trying for a long time to improve preparedness and resilience, but they’re resource-strapped,” Hough said.

MORE 6 Ways You Can Give to Nepal Earthquake Relief

The rest of the world has jumped to Nepal’s aid in the quake’s aftermath, with a host of countries ranging from neighbors like India and China to distant nations like the U.S. and even Israel joining the landlocked Himalayan nation’s own people in providing relief-and-rescue assistance. However, the continuing efforts have enforced a bitter sense of how powerless the Nepali government is to care for its own people when faced with calamity.

“Our government is not strong enough to handle this,” said Kshitiz Nyaupane, a Kathmandu local in his mid-20s. “We must take care of it ourselves.”

Nyaupane’s statement echoes the frustration Nepal’s people feel at a political system wracked by decades of indecision, internal conflict and instability.

A decade-long civil war sparked off by a Maoist rebellion ended in 2006 after claiming nearly 20,000 lives, and the monarchy that had ruled Nepal since the 1700s was abolished in favor of parliamentary democracy. Competing and highly divisive factions of Nepali politics have been unable to come to an agreement on a constitution since then, however, and issues like disaster preparedness have taken a backseat amid an impasse that has lasted nearly a decade.

See India's Rescue Operations in Quake-Devastated Nepal

Indian soldiers, left, on a rescue mission to Nepal rush to board an Indian Air Force aircraft near New Delhi on April 26, 2015.
Indian soldiers, left, on a rescue mission to Nepal rush to board an Indian Air Force aircraft near New Delhi on April 26, 2015.Altaf Qadri—AP
Plastic containers with drinking water are loaded into an Indian Air Force aircraft headed to Nepal, at a base near New Delhi on April 26, 2015.
Plastic containers with drinking water are loaded into an Indian Air Force aircraft headed to Nepal, at a base near New Delhi on April 26, 2015. Altaf Qadri—AP
The shadow of an Indian Air Force aircraft carrying relief material is cast on clouds as it approaches landing in Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 27, 2015.
The shadow of an Indian Air Force aircraft carrying relief material is cast on clouds as it approaches landing in Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 27, 2015. Altaf Qadri—AP
Nepalese volunteers unload relief material, brought by an Indian Air Force helicopter for victims of Saturday's earthquake at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal on April 27, 2015.
Nepalese volunteers unload relief material, brought by an Indian Air Force helicopter for victims of Saturday's earthquake at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal on April 27, 2015.Altaf Qadri—AP
Nepalese soldiers unload relief material brought in an Indian air force helicopter for victims of Saturdayís earthquake at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal on April 27, 2015.
Nepalese soldiers unload relief material brought in by an Indian Air Force helicopter for victims of Saturday's earthquake at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal on April 27, 2015. Altaf Qadri—AP
Nepalese villagers watch as relief material is brought in an Indian air force helicopter for victims of Saturdayís earthquake at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal on April 27, 2015.
Nepalese villagers watch as relief material is brought in by an Indian Air Force helicopter for victims of Saturday's earthquake at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal on April 27, 2015. Altaf Qadri—AP
Nepalese villagers injured in Saturdayís earthquake await evacuation at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal on April 27, 2015.
Nepalese villagers injured in Saturday's earthquake await evacuation at Trishuli Bazar in Nepal on April 27, 2015. Altaf Qadri—AP
Nepalese soldiers carry a wounded man on a makeshift stretcher to an Indian Air Force helicopter as they evacuate victims of Saturday's earthquake from Trishuli Bazar to Kathmandu airport in Nepal on April 27, 2015.
Nepalese soldiers carry a wounded man on a makeshift stretcher to an Indian Air Force helicopter as they evacuate victims of Saturday's earthquake from Trishuli Bazar to Kathmandu airport in Nepal on April 27, 2015. Altaf Qadri—AP
Nepalese victims of Saturday's earthquake lie inside an Indian air force helicopter as they are evacuated from Trishuli Bazar to Kathmandu airport in Nepal on April 27, 2015.
Nepalese victims of Saturday's earthquake lie inside an Indian Air Force helicopter as they are evacuated from Trishuli Bazar to Kathmandu airport in Nepal on April 27, 2015. Altaf Qadri—AP
An Indian Air Force person walks carrying a Nepalese child, wounded in Saturday's earthquake, to a waiting ambulance as the mother rushes to join after they were evacuated from a remote area at the airport in Kathmandu on April 27, 2015.
An Indian Air Force member carries a Nepalese child, wounded in Saturday's earthquake, to a waiting ambulance as the mother rushes to join after they were evacuated from a remote area at the airport in Kathmandu on April 27, 2015. Altaf Qadri—AP
Victims of Saturday's earthquake wait for ambulances to take them to hospitals after being evacuated at the airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 27, 2015.
Victims of Saturday's earthquake wait for ambulances to take them to hospitals after being evacuated at the airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 27, 2015. Altaf Qadri—AP
A man sits with a child on his lap as victims of Saturday's earthquake wait for ambulances after being evacuated at the airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 27, 2015.
A man sits with a child on his lap as victims of Saturday's earthquake wait for ambulances after being evacuated at the airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, on April 27, 2015.Altaf Qadri—AP

“We have had no political stability, nine prime ministers in eight years, and we don’t have a constitution,” Nishchal N. Pandey, director of the Kathmandu-based Centre for South Asian Studies (CSAS), tells TIME. “The people are very, very frustrated” at Nepal’s political and economic paralysis that could well be exacerbated by this disaster, Pandey said.

“The government cannot look after everyone,” said Tika Regmi, executive director of local trekking company Adventure Mountain Explore Treks & Expedition. “It’s the public like us who has to be careful.”

Although all of Regmi’s tour groups bound for the base camp of Mount Everest have fortunately been accounted for, he said not a single member of the government, police or army had come to his village of Budhanilkantha (about 11 km from Kathmandu) as of Monday afternoon. “Some people don’t even have a tent, mattress, blankets or food,” he said. “I don’t know if the government is looking, they may come to us tomorrow or maybe not.” Regmi was unreachable on Tuesday.

Some believe the government’s efforts of the 1990s may have mitigated the extent of the devastation to some degree — experts had previously predicted that an 8.0-magnitude quake in Kathmandu could kill between 40,000 and 250,000 people, according to University of Colorado professor and South Asian earthquake expert Roger Bilham.

But Pandey says there are certain facts and figures that are inexcusable. “Can you imagine that the Nepal army has just one Mi-7 helicopter?” he says. “Just one, for a force of 90,000. This is a grave tragedy.”

The CSAS head hopes that the earthquake, as tragic as it is, will be the jolt Nepal’s political class needs to get its act together. A fully functioning government would go some way to ensure the next quake, which is surely coming, does not wreak such a hefty toll. “So many people have died, our history is completely gone, and if not now, then when will these politicians come together?”

— With reporting by Justin Worland / New York

Read next: Where Will the Next Big Earthquake Hit?

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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Write to Rishi Iyengar at rishi.iyengar@timeasia.com