At least 9,000 left homeless following tremors

At least three people are dead, 19 people seriously injured and 9,000 homeless after two earthquakes struck southeastern Tajikistan at the weekend, emergency officials confirmed on Monday. The earthquakes, measuring between 5 and 5.5 on the Richter scale, struck the Central Asian state on Saturday at 5:12 am. (12.12 am. UTC) and 3:57 pm. (10.57 am. UTC), Jamila Tiloeva, a Tajik Emergency Ministry spokeswoman, said. Tiloeva said the tremors killed three children and seriously injured 19. At least 1,484 buildings and homes had been damaged. "A special commission on the ground is assessing the situation and more detailed information will be available later," Tiloeva said. Abdurahkim Rajabov, Tajikistan's deputy emergency minister, said that at least 9,000 people had been left homeless by the quakes. “They are still out in the open and it is very hot there. Therefore, there is a strong need for tents on the ground. They also need kitchen sets and other relief items," Rajabov said from Dushanbe, the Tajik capital. He said that Kumsangir district and parts of the Pianj district of the southern Khatlon province were the worst hit, with the settlements of Dusti, Daminina, Dehai and Sholikori suffering the most. The Emergency Ministry was collecting aid provided by the government and international organisations at its Dushanbe centre to send to the affected area. The ministry said its relief teams had erected more than 80 tents in the area and the Tajik Red Crescent Society had made 40 more available. The government had sent 30 mt of food and fuel supplies. Relief teams were also arranging for clean drinking water to be trucked in. The tremor was centred 180 km southeast of Dushanbe, close to the border with Afghanistan, where at least one person was also killed and dozens of homes destroyed in the northern province of Kunduz. Tajik emergency officials said that assistance from the international community would be welcomed. The United States Embassy in Tajikistan said on Monday that it had, through its partner the Counterpart Humanitarian Assistance Programme, already shipped initial relief supplies. The aid included medical supplies, blankets, beds, clothing and other household items to help people whose homes had been destroyed. More than US $24,000 in aid had been delivered so far, with the emergency ministry coordinating its distribution. Central Asia is prone to natural disasters including earthquakes, landslides, floods, avalanches and drought. According to the European Commission's Humanitarian Aid Department (ECHO), natural disasters have killed about 2,500 people and affected some 5.5 million, nearly 10 percent of the total population in the region, over the past decade. AT/GS/DS