Floods displace at least a thousand families around Herat

More than a thousand families have been displaced and many residential areas and agricultural fields affected after severe rainfall and flooding in the western province of Herat. According to the Afghan Red Crescent Society (ARCS) Thursday’s flooding affected Guzara district and some parts of Herat city, the provincial capital. In addition to the families that lost their homes, thousands of acres of agricultural land have been completely destroyed. “Over 500 families have lost their homes and have been displaced in Kul, Becharkhy and Shamaka villages of Guzara, while around 500 other families lost their homes in Herat city as well,” Nooruddin Ahmadi, head of ARCS' western region, told IRIN from Herat on Monday. Ahmadi added that the disaster had also destroyed many bridges, schools and mosques. “Around 80 million sq metres of agricultural land had also been destroyed,” he maintained. ARCS said affected families were in dire need of food and non- food items, mainly tents. “They have taken refuge in neighbouring villagers’ homes and food, clothing and shelter are desperately needed,” Ahmadi explained. The United Nations in Kabul reported that a disaster emergency task force had decided that a joint UN and government mission would be sent to the affected villages. “The exact number of displaced people is not known at this time but if a humanitarian intervention is necessary, immediate assistance is available,” Manoel de Almeida e Silva, a spokesperson of United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) told IRIN. Latest ARCS reports indicated that a needs assessment had been conducted and food and other items would be distributed to the most severely affected families on Tuesday. “We are meeting today with UNAMA and PRTs [US-led civil military Provincial Reconstruction Teams] to see what any of the aid parties can contribute to ARCS emergency response to be distributed tomorrow,” Ahmadi said. Meanwhile, UNAMA reported that heavy snowfalls on 15 and 16 January with high winds and avalanches closed the Salang tunnel, the key humanitarian route from Kabul to the country's northern provinces. “All UN road missions are temporarily suspended for travel via the Salang as well as through the Shiber Pass [east of Salang], until further notice, as there is a possibility of more snow. Road movement to Mazar and Konduz via both roads is therefore not possible at this point,” the UN spokesperson noted. The Salang tunnel was officially re-opened for 24-hour service on 28 December after many months of reconstruction that began in June last year. The Salang road and tunnel reopened to small vehicles on Sunday, and according to ACTED (Agency for Technical Cooperation and Development) traffic is alternating in both directions, as only one lane has been cleared. The French NGO, which is responsible for the safety of Salang traffic together with the Afghan ministry of public works, announced that normal operations of the tunnel and roads that lead from it, would resume soon.