Preliminary damage survey of school buildings and proposed plan for reconstruction of school buildings after 2015 Gorkha earthquake in Nepal

Abstract The 2015 Gorkha Earthquake (Mw = 7.8) in Nepal has devastated about 9,000 schools. The majority of damage was conceived in the peripheral districts of the Kathmandu valley. Damage distribution in the most-affected 14 districts shows that previous construction practices were an important determent for the intensity of the damage observed across these districts. The use of improper construction materials, lack of construction supervision and non-compliance with existing building codes during design and construction contributed to most of the school buildings to be severely or fully damaged. In addition to the physical damage to infrastructure, there is a significant psychological impact in terms of the effect that the disaster had on the mental health of on the school-going children, their parents and teachers within the affected areas. Preliminary damage assessment results show that in the most-affected districts, about 86% schools have been affected by the earthquakes and about one million students have been or still are out of schools for a longer period of time as a result of this. Preliminary data shows that about 30% classrooms are collapsed, about 13% classrooms are major damaged, and about 17% are minor damaged with in the most-affected 14 districts. This evidences of losses and damages from the earthquake provides an opportunity to learn lessons for future preparedness to encounter the challenge of disaster. This paper attempts to identify the needs to be addressed for the reconstruction of school buildings after 2015 Gorkha Earthquake in Nepal.