National
Mapping the quake
Identifying the need of mapping the effects of the Great Quake for facilitating rescue and relief operationsHumanitarian organisations, including the Red Cross and the Nepal Army, among others, have been using the digital maps made available by the KLL. The maps contain district-wise effects of the earthquake and delineate dead, injured and missing people, kinds of assistance needed, damaged houses and infrastructures, household density and population density in the respective areas.
In collaboration with the Humanitarian OpenStreetMap Team, the organisations has already started mapping disaster zones as per the reports it collects by phone and online.
“Before, we were also involved in mapping the typhoon in the Philippines.So we have a fair bit of idea of what we are doing right now,” said Executive Director of KLL,Nama Raj Budhathoki. According to Budhathoki, well-coordinated rescue and relief efforts are vital to saving more lives and making the best use of the available resources in the present scenario.
Reports and mapsbrought out by the KLL contain detailed descriptions along with pictures and precise locations of the affected areas. Over 1600 reports are available in the organisation’s site, Quakemap.org. According to Budhathoki, about 400 organisations are currently using KLL’smaps and reports to carry out relief operations in different parts of the country, while 25 volunteers are still working on mapping the quake and its aftermath at KLL’s headquarters. Globally, more than 4,600 mappers have been involved in the project.
Although the organisation is focusing on aiding rescue and relief operations right now, it plans to shift its attention to rehabilitation and reconstruction programmes in the future.