Nepalese-born Cairns man speaks of gratitude as village rebuilt

The generosity of Far North Queenslanders has helped build a school and restore hope in a Nepal village shattered by a deadly earthquake.

Som Tamang with children and volunteers on his return to Batase to mark the ninth anniversary of the earthquake. Picture: Kirsty Nancarrow

Cairns has played a vital role in rebuilding a village in Nepal nine years after an earthquake which killed almost 9000 people.

The April 2015 event killed 8964 people and destroyed or damaged about 10 per cent of the buildings in Nepal, leaving up to 3.5 million people homeless.

Nepalese-born Som Tamang, who has lived in Cairns since 2003, said he couldn’t have rebuilt his home village of Batase without the help of Far North Queenslanders.

“I would not have been able to rebuild the children’s hostel following the earthquake and continue the education of children in my village without the support of the Cairns community,” Mr Tamang said.

Mr Tamang was commemorating Anzac Day at home in Cairns in 2015 when a phone call changed his life.

On the other end of the line, Mr Tamang’s older sister screamed hysterically to tell him their brother Amber had been killed in the earthquake.

Amber was the president of the school in Batase.

The school was destroyed by the earthquake along with a children's hostel and several houses.

Som Tamang with children and volunteers on his return to Batase to mark the ninth anniversary of the earthquake. Picture: Kirsty Nancarrow

Through donations, sponsoring children and volunteering as teachers, Far North Queenslanders have helped Mr Tamang rebuild the school.

“Som escaped from slavery as a child and knew the power of education to change lives,” journalist and author Kirsty Nancarrow, who has written a biography of Mr Tamang, said.

“The earthquake is one of many seemingly insurmountable setbacks Som has overcome in his life to secure a better future for Batase’s children.”

The earthquake completely destroyed the old children's hostel. A new one has now been built thanks to the generosity of the Cairns community. Picture: Kirsty Nancarrow

The children's hostel today. Picture: Bijay Tamang

Rebuilding the school and hostel has helped many children in the village gain education and avoid becoming slaves or being forced into child marriages.

Mr Tamang was just 10 years old when he was trapped as a child slave in Nepal’s capital Kathmandu.

Two years later, he managed to escape and go home to Batase.

Working as a trekking guide, he was able to provide for his younger siblings before moving to Cairns in 2003 where he has lived with wife Susan and their three children.

One of the many homes in Batase which was also destroyed in the earthquake. Picture: Kirty Nancarrow

Mr Tamang became the first person in his village to gain a university degree when he graduated from James Cook University in Cairns.

Returning to Batase on the nine year anniversary of the quake, Mr Tamang said he hoped to add grades 11 and 12 to the school so students could complete a full education in their home village.

Donations can be made through the Rotary Australia World Community Service Friends of Himalayan Children project via https://donations.rawcs.com.au/28-2023-24

Originally published as Nepalese-born Cairns man speaks of gratitude as village rebuilt