The impact of the weekend earthquake in Nepal, which killed more than 4,000 people, is being felt more than 7,600 miles away on the campus of West Virginia University.

“It tore the city I grew up in into shreds and destroyed numerous historical and cultural heritage sites, while continuing to haunt our country through persistent tremors,” said Dharendra Thapa, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Exercise Physiology at the WVU School of Medicine. “My family and others have spent the past couple of nights scared in the streets with a limited supply of food, water and shelter.”

Thapa is one of 23 students from Nepal attending classes in Morgantown this semester. The University’s Office of International Students and Scholars has reached out to affected students to offer help and support.

Additional services are available through the Office of Student Life and the Carruth Center.

There are currently no students studying in Nepal, said Tara George-Jones, director of study abroad in the Office of International Programs.

The death toll is expected to rise in the aftermath of the earthquake, and many people remain trapped under mounds of rubble.

A number of organizations are working in Nepal to supply aid and volunteers. Thapa is encouraging support to these efforts. “I request all my WVU family to help my country and people in this desperate time,” she said.

-WVU-

ak/04/27/15

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