The photographer Renaud Philippe returned to the epicenter of last year’s 7.8-magnitude earthquake to document what progress has been made in some of the hardest-to-reach villages. Before April 25, 2015, Barpak was a picturesque Nepali village nestled some 6,000 feet above sea level. After, less than 20 of the 1,400 houses remained. “Many things changed since last year, but there is so much to do,” Philippe said. Because it is so difficult to reach, people in Barpak and nearby Laprak have no machinery and limited electricity to help rebuild their homes; all construction must be done by hand. “Everyone is hopeless about getting any government help,” Philippe said. “They can only count on themselves.” Philippe has shared a selection of his images from both 2015 and 2016 with The Atlantic. The first 15 images below are from the first few weeks after the quake and the second 15 were taken in April of this year.
Rebuilding Nepal by Hand
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Read moreAn aerial view of Barpak on May 14, 2015. Nearly all 1,400 houses in the village were decimated during the earthquake on April 25, 2015. #
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Read moreVolunteers from Pokhara, Nepal's second largest city, help clear a collapsed home on May 9, 2015. #
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Read moreBuddhi Bahadur Gurung, 50, lost his wife in the earthquake. His daughter was also buried by the rubble, but she managed to get out alive. “I do not want to cry in front of my children, but when the night come I miss her,” he said on May 9, 2015. #
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Read morePeople line up to get supplies after the quake on May 13, 2015. Fortunately, water sources were preserved and pipes were repaired quickly. #
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Read moreTwo weeks after the earthquake, an NGO was able to provide some electricity to Barpak. Men, women, and children carried solar panels up the steep paths of the Himalayan mountains to power a generator, which in turn charged cell phones and allowed villagers to reconnect to the world on May 11, 2015. #
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Read moreA woman mourns the death of her son in the April earthquake on May 8, 2015. #
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Read moreA mountain road pictured on May 7, 2015, between the village of Baluwa and Barpak was cracked from the force of the earthquake. #
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Read moreA portion of the village of Laprak was also completely destroyed by the earthquake. The inhabitants left their homes for camps like this on higher ground due to the threat of landslides. The Gupsi camp is pictured on May 13, 2015. #
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Read moreReti Gurung, 83, sits inside a tent in Laprak on May 13, 2015. #
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Read moreA man carries a suitcase filled with supplies on May 13, 2015. Because of the steep paths to Laprak and Barpak, NGOs could not deliver aid themselves. Locals would carry what they could. #
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Read moreChildren play in the dust cloud created by an Indian Army helicopter in Barpak on May 9, 2015. Villagers tried to flee to Pokhara or Kathmandu. #
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Read moreTwo women carrying aid packages march up the mountain in single file on May 11, 2015. It takes hours to bring sleeping bags, rice, personal hygiene products, and tents to those who need them. #
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Read moreA view of Barpak village on May 7, 2015. People looked through the debris hoping to find kitchen utensils, pots, clothes, or provisions. #
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Read moreWomen pray for the the 72 victims of the earthquake in Barpak's Catholic Church on May 9, 2015. #
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Read moreA woman walks across the wreckage of Barpak in the shadow of the Buddha Himal mountain on May 7, 2015. #
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Read moreOn the one year anniversary of the earthquake, villagers from Barpak light candles in memory of the 72 people who died. #
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Read moreA man works with a pickaxe on April 23, 2016. Without any construction equipment or electricity, villagers must rebuild the hundreds of decimated houses by hand. #
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Read moreYoung girls practice a dance on April 24, 2016, for the celebration to mark the first anniversary of the earthquake in Barpak. #
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Read moreIn anticipation of the president of Nepal's visit to mark the one-year anniversary of the earthquake, villagers work to clear overgrowth on April 23, 2016. #
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Read moreVillagers look for their names on the government's aid list on April 23, 2016. In order to qualify for the aid, they must meet certain construction standards and have a bank account in the National Bank of Nepal. There is no bank in Barpak. #
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Read moreA boy washes himself in Barpak on April 17, 2016. Life is slowly returning to normal, but the majority of villagers are still living in temporary shelters. #
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Read moreMost residents of Laprak have not returned to their homes. They live in Gupsi, a temporary camp 3,000 meters above sea level, to avoid landslides. Gupsi is pictured on April 20, 2016. #
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Read moreA woman sits inside her rebuilt home in Laprak on April 21, 2016. When monsoon season comes, she must leave it and join the others in Gupsi. #
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Read morePeople work together to rebuild a home in Barpak on April 19, 2016. Only a handful of houses were left standing after the earthquake. #
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Read moreA woman carries water in Gupsi on April 21, 2016. #
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Read moreA mother and her three children sit inside their temporary shelter in Barpak on April 22, 2016. They are still waiting for aid. #
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Read moreA construction site in Barpak on April 17, 2016. #
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Read moreThree elderly men sit in front of some of the rebuilt homes in Barpak on April 23, 2016. #
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Read moreA girl watches her father working on a new house in Barpak on April 15, 2016. #
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Read moreWomen wash clothes at a spring on April 23, 2016. #
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Read moreA woman looks out from her home in the Gupsi temporary camp on April 20, 2016. #
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