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In Photos: Funeral Pyres, Anger, and Slow Recovery in Nepal

Rescuers continue searching for survivors despite diminishing hopes and hard rain, while anger at the government's handling of aid money boils over.
Photo by Spencer Chumbley/VICE News

It has been almost a week since a 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit Nepal, and the death toll now rests at more than 6,200. That number is expected to rise as the nation continues to dig itself out.

Rescue workers still search for survivors, but hope that anyone remains alive in the rubble is dwindling. Meanwhile, thunderstorms in the mountainous country — roads were already rendered impassable by landslides and other damage caused by the quake — further hindered relief efforts. Reaching areas outside the capital of Kathmandu has been a challenge, with helicopters — in short supply, according to UNICEF — serving as the main mode of delivering aid.

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Though the government has promised to provide $1,000 to victims' families and an additional $400 for funeral fees, Nepalis have been critical of the government's slow dispersal of aid despite the extreme need, especially in more remote parts of the country. Tens of thousands of people are said to have been left homeless, though in Kathmandu, people who slept in tents or other makeshift shelters fearing the stability of buildings amid numerous aftershocks have almost all returned home — if their homes were spared by the quake.

VICE News continues to report from the ground in Nepal.

All photos by Spencer Chumbley/VICE News

A Hindu priest stands over a woman's funeral pyre at the Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu. Fires at the temple burn continually as people put to rest those who died in the quake.

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A man holding an umbrella walks past the Bhairab Nath Temple in Bhaktapur's Durbar Square as heavy rains fall. Many of Nepal's UNESCO World Heritage Sites were severely damaged by the earthquake.

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Protestors angry at the government's slow disaster response and distribution of aid money clash with police Friday near Tribhuvan International Airport.

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"What the hell is happening?" this man shouted as police loaded him into a truck. "People are dying out there, and they are keeping [aid money] for the political game. Everything is not politics."

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Search-and-rescue crews began reaching the district of Sindhupalchowk Thursday. A Nepalese police officer looks on as a Netherlands-based crew searches for the body of a young man who died when the building collapsed.

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Two young women wait for a bus in the remote Sangha Chowk district.

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Landslides caused by the earthquake — along with heavy rains — have made many roads in Nepal's more mountainous districts impassable. On Thursday, traffic resumes through a freshly cleared landslide that has been blocking the road since April 25.

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Subhadra Dhakal surveys damage in the village of Lamsanghu. About a three-hour drive from Kathmandu, the village was hit hard by the quake.

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A man picks through rubble in front of a collapsed house in the village of Bahrabise.

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These Buddhist monks from Nepal's Buddhist Federation were in Bahrabise assisting with relief efforts.