Flinders University student Hanna Daych witnessed first-hand the devastation of the first earthquake in Nepal and continues to raise much-needed funds for children left homeless and for villagers in rural areas still cut off from aid relief.

The Law-International Relations student was in Kathmandu when the earthquake struck on April 25. She was returning home to Adelaide after a student exchange in Utrecht in the Netherlands.

While in Nepal, Ms Daych and a friend moved swiftly to create a relief fund to assist the communities hit hardest by the devastation from the earthquake.

Following the second earthquake near Mt Everest on May 12, just two weeks after the quake that destroyed Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, and surrounding regions, Ms Daych stepped up her efforts to raise more funds to send directly the centres she has direct contact with in Nepal.

“It’s been difficult for communities to get on with rebuilding for fear of more earthquakes and because existing buildings are so damaged,” she says.

“After so many weeks, those that are vulnerable to disease will be put in even more danger.

“It is now more crucial than ever that the people affected receive urgent medical supplies, food, shelter and clothing.”

All funds raised by Ms Daych’s appeal will go towards:

• The orphans of Triple Gem Children’s Home who are still homeless and in need of further support
• A remote village in East Nepal where every building was destroyed by the first earthquake. The village has also lost most of its crops and currently has no vehicle access or food supply
• Native Nepal, an organisation started by unpaid tourists who have remained in Nepal following the initial earthquake to purchase and distribute emergency supplies to remote villages which are not being accessed by foreign aid.

For details on how to donate or more information, please contact Ms Daych at [email protected] or on her mobile 0439 661 589.

Hanna’s personal account of the earthquake was published in the Dutch newspaper, NL Times (30 April 2015), where she also worked part-time as a reporter while on the student exchange in Utrecht.