Military appeals for more relief following new tremors

The Pakistani military in the country’s Northern Areas has appealed for more relief items, following further tremors in the Astor Valley on Sunday night. The latest quakes bring to over 35,000 the number of people affected in the region.

"We have to extend relief to Gorikot and Astor, but we have distributed everything and have nothing left," the force commander of the Northern Areas, Maj-Gen Nadeem Ahmed Khan, told IRIN at an emergency news conference in the northern town of Gilgit on Monday night.

"We are concentrating on providing tents and medical supplies as these are crucial at a time when temperatures are dropping," he said, noting an urgent need for both items.

Some 35,000 people or about half the valley's population have been affected since the tremors - measuring up to 5.8 on the Richter scale - first began on 21/22 November. Conditions are said to be desperate, and there is an urgent need for supplies.

According to government sources, 21 people have been killed and thousands left homeless as a result. A separate earthquake nearby, affecting some 2,500 people, killed another 11 people on 2 November.

"People are very scared and they are refusing to stay in their homes as they fear they will collapse," Khan explained.

With the tremors continuing in the Astor Valley on Tuesday causing landslides, which have already blocked the biggest transport route, the Karakoram Highway, Khan said they might have to explore the possibility of bringing in supplies from China. "This would be our last option," he asserted.

A number of NGOs, including Islamic Relief, the Al-Rashid Trust, the Al-Akhtar Trust, the Red Crescent and the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) are assisting victims. "AKRSP has been providing health facilities in several affected villages, but much more is needed," he said.

Khan also took the opportunity to thank the NGOs, saying the relief operations could not have happened without their assistance. He also called upon the media to dispel rumours that there was going to be a volcanic eruption. "These are vicious rumours, which are creating panic and fear in the villagers, and are completely unsubstantiated."

The government has evacuated 1,830 people from vulnerable areas. A camp has been set up at Guner Farm, some 100 km from Gilgit, to which about 2,500 people have been relocated.

A survey is being carried out in the area to determine compensation rights for loss of life, property and livestock.

Commenting on the situation, Jehangir Khan, the government joint-secretary responsible for the Northern Areas, told IRIN in the capital, Islamabad: "As of yet, we have not formally appealed for international assistance, but that could change if we are not able to meet the needs of the people on the ground."

But speaking from Gilgit, Khan was more direct: "We need to help the newly affected people as soon as possible. But we need the help of the international community on this."