OCHA Situation Report No. 5
Afghanistan - Earthquake
27 March 2002


This report has been compiled on the basis of information provided by
UNOCHA and other humanitarian actors in Afghanistan, as well as media
reports. For additional background information on the recent earthquakes
in Afghanistan, please refer to our previous Situation Reports No 1-4
(available on ReliefWeb).


Background and Current Situation

1.  A series of earthquakes hit Baghlan province of Afghanistan in the
evening of 25 March, the early morning 26 March and the afternoon of 27
March. The epicenter of the earthquakes was located southeast of Nahrin
district in Baghlan province. The affected area extends in a radius of
12-15 km around Nahrin. Other affected areas include Burkha, Panshjiri,
Lakankhel and Toli, but these areas have been less affected than the
larger settlement of Nahrin.

2.  Assessments carried out on Wednesday 27 March confirmed that at least
7,000 families have been affected. Assessments are ongoing and this number
could grow as further assessments are carried out.


Highlights from Today's Kabul Emergency Planning Meeting

3.  A second emergency planning meeting was convened in Kabul, Wednesday,
27 March, at 1700hrs local time. Mr. Ashraf Ghani (Director Afghanistan
Assistance Coordination Agency / AACA), who had just returned from the
affected region, gave a briefing from which the following issues emanated:

4.  According to local sources 600 deaths have been confirmed, which is
significantly lower than what was being anticipated yesterday. Of those,
450 ceremonial burials have been reported as having taken place since
yesterday and it was noted that today fewer burials were taking place,
which is an indicator that the final death toll is probably likely to be
around 800. The projection for total fatalities is between 800 and 1200
people.

5.  Food distribution systems appear to be in place and medical emergency
teams in Nahrin seem to be no longer required. Any new medical teams will
be deployed to Puli Khumri for purposes of emergency referral.

6.  The Afghanistan Interim Authority (AIA) planning figure is 20,000
families and 15,000 tents have been distributed or are en route. A
shortfall remains of 5000 tents.

7.  100, 000 blankets have been distributed or are en route but shortfall
remains of 60,000 blankets.

8.  A major shortfall in mattresses has been identified. Only 800 have
been made available which currently leaves a shortfall of 99,200. Another
priority is water management and distribution.

9.  Truck traffic is very heavy in the area. An additional problem is that
trucks are breaking down. As many of these trucks are Russian made, Mr.
Ghani requested Russian representatives at the meeting to consider
establishing a repair facility for these models, to relieve pressure on
the roads. He also drew attention to the increasing costs of truck rentals
and raised the issue of lack of vehicle insurance in Afghanistan as a
factor of high cost of rentals. Improving road access and transport was
stressed as a priority issue especially as many bulk items and materials
cannot be transported by helicopter.

10.  In addition, Mr. Ghani called upon all actors on the ground to work
jointly in a coordinated fashion as per the priorities identified by the
authorities in collaboration with inter-agency emergency response
coordination mechanisms.

11.  Lastly, Mr. Ghani emphasized the priority nature of recovery
initiatives. The IA has contacted donors and the international community
to mobilize funds for recovery. Noting that this is a drought affected
area and no harvest is likely this year, the main areas of focus for
recovery are food security, de-mining, and income generation and
livelihoods, with special attention being paid to the needs of children
and women.


National and International Response

12.  In the morning of 27 March, an ISAF convoy comprising 7 trucks
departed Kabul for Nahrin. The trip by road will take about 15 hours. The
trucks are carrying medical supplies, engineers, mine clearance experts
and logistics teams.

13.  One C160 flight brought commodities to Mazar from Kabul today,
carrying 5 MTs of supplies including tents, plastic sheets and jerry cans
donated by UNHCR. The items will arrive at the disaster site tomorrow.

14.  In addition, helicopters flew directly to Nahrin. They carried 50
tents, 900 jerry cans, 200 plastic sheets (provided by UNICEF and UNHCR),
DFID's emergency unit module, 2 WHO emergency medical health kits, and 4
medical personnel (two from WHO and two from UNICEF). There is a
possibility that a C160 plane will depart tonight from Mazar carrying
further assistance.

15.  It is expected that further C160 flights will take place tomorrow, 28
March. The two helicopters are also on task tomorrow (shuttling between
Bagram and Nahrin).

16.  30 MTs of non-food items have been already pre-positioned at Kabul
airport, ready to move tomorrow. These include tents, jerry cans, plastic
sheets, clothing and medical equipment.

17.  OCHA-Geneva deployed a 4-member UNDAC team to the affected area. In
addition, OCHA will be in a position to make available an Emergency Grant
with a total value of US$ 100,000 (US$ 50,000 OCHA Emergency Grant and US$
50,000 Norwegian Emergency Grant managed by OCHA) for priority needs
identified on the ground.

18.  OCHA is in close contact with UNOCHA Offices in Afghanistan and will
revert with further information, as it becomes available.


Need for Additional International Assistance

19.  Whilst there is a tentative sense among humanitarian actors on the
ground that their collective efforts and in-country stocks will be
adequate to meet the most immediate priorities, additional international
assistance may be required. Details on specific items required will be
communicated as soon as the details of further assessments are available
and a full stock-taking of local resources has taken place. In addition,
donors and other concerned parties are requested to note the need for the
replenishment of pre-existing stocks meant for the ongoing humanitarian
crisis that are currently being deployed as part of the earthquake
response.

20.  OCHA is prepared to serve as a channel for cash contributions to be
used for immediate relief assisstance, in coordination with relavent
organizations in the United Nations system. For banking details please
contact the desk officers indicated below. OCHA provides donor governments
with written confirmation and pertinent details concerning the utilization
of the funds contributed.

21.  This situation report, together with further information on ongoing
emergencies, is also available on the OCHA Internet Website at
http://www.reliefweb.int. Maps relating to the earthquakes can be found on
the Website of the Afghanistan Information Management Service (AIMS) at
http://www.hic.org.pk. The Virtual OSOCC (accessible through ReliefWeb)
also provides information on the earthquake and can be used for
information sharing.


Telephone: +41-22-91712 34
Fax: +41-22-917 00 23
E-mail: ochagva@un.org

In case of emergency only: Tel. +41-22-917 20 10

Desk Officers:
  Mr. Ivo Freijsen, Mr. Anvar Munavvarov
  Direct Tel. +41-22-917 1695/1669

Press contact:
  (GVA)  Ms. Elizabeth Byrs, direct Tel. +41-22-917 26 56
  (NYC)  Ms. Phyllis Lee, direct Tel. +1-212-963 48 32


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