A major earthquake struck central Nepal with an epicentre in Gorkha district, killing close to nine thousand people and destroying hundreds of thousands of homes.
Historic structures in Kathmandu's Durbar squares collapsed, and remote hill districts were cut off by landslides for weeks. An avalanche triggered on Mount Everest killed climbers and guides at base camp.
Reconstruction was slowed by political disagreement over the distribution of aid and by the difficulty of moving materials into mountainous terrain before the monsoon.
