More
than one thousand people are feared dead in a massive earthquake,
whose epicentre was in South Asia’s Kashmir Valley. Tremors
from the quake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale were felt
as far away as Afghanistan and the central states of India,
over a thousand kilometres away and in Chittagong, Bangladesh.
People across the region watched in shock as buildings swayed
– just moments after they had fled outdoors following
the initial tremors. Televisions showed images of lamp posts
swinging from one side of the screen to the other.
In Islamabad, Pakistan’s capital city, panic-stricken
residents fled their homes and watched in horror as buildings
shook and walls swayed for about a minute just before 9am local
time. Initial reports said that more than 75 apartments were
damaged. The worst of these was the Margalla Towers residential
complex, in the heart of the city, which collapsed trapping
an estimated 80 people under the rubble.
Within moments, Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS) ambulances
arrived at the Margalla Towers to provide first aid and carry
the injured to hospitals in the Pakistani capital. This emergency
ambulance service was set up by the Pakistan Red Crescent Society
last year with the aim of providing an immediate response to
disasters. The Pakistan Red Crescent also established Rescue
15, a partnership with the Federal Capital police, in order
to respond to crises.
“This was a demonstration of the foresight of the PRCS
programme. Rescue 15 was designed to respond to a crisis within
15 minutes and so, this showed how relevant the Red Crescent’s
ambulance service was,” says Dr Khalid Khadim, Health
and Care Manager for the International Federation in Pakistan.
The town of Uri, in Jammu and Kashmir in India, has suffered
severe damage. Reports say 80 per cent of the houses in Uri
have either collapsed or are damaged. The death toll currently
stands at over 180. This figure does not include military personnel
killed in the earthquake. The army has launched rescue operations
and set up makeshift hospitals in the town.
Meanwhile, the Indian Red Cross, together with a delegate from
the International Committee of the Red Cross, has undertaken
distribution of 1,500 blankets, 3,000 kitchen sets and clothing.
The national headquarters of the Indian Red Cross has put the
National Disaster Response Team on standby. Some 12,000 units
of disaster management stocks are also being kept ready by the
Indian Red Cross. In addition, several state branches of the
Indian Red Cross have offered their support.
The Indian Red Cross headquarters has also kept mobile disaster
units and water and sanitation units on standby. These units
comprise material from earlier Federation Emergency Response
Units that arrived after the Gujarat earthquake in 2001. They
have been used in other disasters such as last year’s
tsunami.
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Kashmiri
women cry after the earthquake in Baramulla, 60km (36
miles) from Srinagar. Photo: REUTERS/Danish Ismail, courtesy
www.alertnet.org
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Pakistani
volunteers work at a collapsed building following the
earthquake in Islamabad.
Photo: REUTERS/Faisal Mahmood courtesy www.alertnet.org
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Kashmiri
Muslims carry an injured man after an earthquake in Sopore,
north of Srinagar.
Photo: REUTERS/Danish Ismail courtesy www.alertnet.org |
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