Pakistan earthquake affects 108,000 people, half of whom are children
With temperatures dropping, UNICEF is concerned about the urgent needs of children and women
NEW YORK (November 1, 2008) — UNICEF is providing immediate lifesaving assistance to children and women affected by the earthquake that struck the southwestern province of Balochistan, Pakistan, on October 29, killing approximately 200 and affecting some 108,000 people—50 percent of which are children. Almost 19,000 of the affected are under five-years-old. The numbers are likely to increase with aftershocks and as relief teams gain access to more remote areas. On October 30, the Chief Minister of Balochistan appealed for international assistance to be provided to the earthquake victims.
On Thursday, UNICEF carried out a joint assessment with the Government of Pakistan and UN officials in the worst hit areas in Pishin District, where over 38,000 people have been affected—including almost 7,000 children under five-years-old. In Ziarat District, 70,000 people have been affected, some 2,000 houses damaged and some 128 schools were partially damaged in the earthquake. Many roads are impassable, health care centers have been destroyed, and food and water supplies are at risk. Traditionally, the mud or mud-brick houses in the area have low resistance against earthquakes.
With winter closing in, the most urgent needs of the survivors are shelter, safe drinking water, food, warm clothing and emergency medical assistance.
A priority for UNICEF is to ensure the availability of clean water. Children are especially vulnerable to diseases, such as diarrhea and cholera. Most of the water sources in the affected districts have been damaged by the earthquake: approximately 12,000 people in Ziarat lack safe water and are dependent on supplies from water trucks.
UNICEF—through its field office in Quetta, the capital city of Balochistan Province—has started providing, in collaboration with the Government of Pakistan, water and sanitation services in Ziarat, including water supplies of 40,000 liters, the deployment of four water tankers, and initiating the restoration of a water scheme to supply safe water to 8,400 people, including over 3,800 children. UNICEF also provided 50 Metric Tons of UNIMIX to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) as supplementary food for young children and pregnant and lactating women. Warm clothing for an initial group of 100 children in camps in Ziarat will also be distributed today in Ziarat.
UNICEF is now mobilizing additional emergency supplies—tarpaulin, water bladders, jerry cans and aqua tabs—that were pre-positioned in warehouses in Karachi and Peshawar. Supplies are being trucked from Karachi to Quetta today.
In order to scale up its emergency operations in the affected districts of Balochistan province and to support the Government’s efforts, UNICEF urgently seeks $5 million from donors to expand its lifesaving and rehabilitation activities in water and sanitation, nutrition, education and child protection.
Balochistan, located near the Afghan border, is the largest province in Pakistan but one of its least populated, and is prone to natural disasters. In October 2005, a quake in northern Pakistan killed 70,000 people and left more than three million homeless.
About UNICEF
For more than 60 years, UNICEF has been the world’s leading international children’s organization, working in over 150 countries to address the ongoing issues that affect why kids are dying. UNICEF provides lifesaving nutrition, clean water, education, protection and emergency response saving more young lives than any other humanitarian organization in the world. While millions of children die every year of preventable causes like dehydration, upper respiratory infections and measles, UNICEF, with the support of partnering organizations and donors, has the global experience, resources and reach to give children the best hope of survival. For more information about UNICEF, please visit www.unicefusa.org.
For additional information, please contact:
Richard Alleyne, U.S. Fund for UNICEF, 212.880.9177, ralleyne@unicefusa.org
Lisa Szarkowski, U.S. Fund for UNICEF, 212.922.2643, lszarkowski@unicefusa.org
