Red Cross mobilises in Nepal following natural disaster: 'Entire villages & communities washed out'

François Picard is pleased to welcome Tommaso Della Longa, Spokesperson for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. The immediate challenge in Nepal is not only the scale of destruction, explains Della Longa, but the difficulty of reaching communities whose roads, bridges and communications have been swept away. Their priority remains search and rescue and the delivery of life-saving assistance, even as they begin preparing for longer-term recovery. Yet this is also a deeply human crisis for first responders: local Red Cross volunteers are supporting their own communities while some have themselves lost homes or relatives.