Pardeep Singh Banwait, centre, with local Nepalese helping build temporary shelters.
Pardeep Singh Banwait, centre, with local Nepalese helping build temporary shelters.
A Rotorua man says he's returning to Nepal to continue helping people in need after a second quake ripped through the country.
Pardeep Singh Banwait left his small family and his Rotorua business, Fruit Monster, last week to assist people in Kathmandu and the surrounding villages to rebuild their homesand lives.
With the help of locals and the financial generosity of family, friends and the local Sikh community, he has been able to provide 201 families with temporary shelter since the 7.8-magnitude quake struck on April 25, killing more than 8000 people. He also visited the Tudikhel relief camp for people who have been displaced by the earthquake. He said he saw families with 1-year-old children living in tarpaulin tents.
Mr Banwait said after a week in Nepal he had flown to India to visit his family when a second 7.3-magnitude earthquake centred between Kathmandu and Mt Everest hit on Tuesday.
"As soon as my flight landed I tried ringing [friends] in Nepal but the lines were congested and I couldn't get hold of them for about 15 minutes," he said.
"All the temporary shelters have collapsed and people walking in front of [already] collapsed buildings were trapped because there are no cordons or barriers in front of them to keep them back.
"This [latest quake] is devastating. People are trying to get their lives on track but the latest earthquake has forced everyone to sleep outside."
Mr Banwait will return to Nepal tomorrow with more supplies for a school that teaches up to 250 students. He will return to New Zealand on Sunday. Once home, he plans to set up a group to continue to raise funds for earthquake relief.
