OCHA Situation Report No. 8
Afghanistan - Earthquake
1 April 2002


Donors are being advised that relief supplies are needed to replenish the
ear-marked stocks that agencies and organizations have diverted to the
earthquake zone.

Th report below is based on information provided by the On-site Operations
Coordination Centre (OSOCC) in Nahrin (Baghlan Province, Afghanistan):


Overall Situation

1.  While tremors continued in the area there are no reports of additional
damage. Also, continued assessments to the outlying areas have not
revealed any further needs not already covered (or in the process of being
covered) by relief efforts.

2.  While most of the acute needs of the affected population have been
met, the focus of the disaster is now shifting towards planning for
reconstruction.


Assistance and Sectoral Updates

3.  Considerable progress is reported on distribution of relief items and
within the next few days any still unmet acute needs will be covered.

4.  Non-food item (NFI) distribution, primarily focusing on tents and
blankets, has reached over 14,000 families and the distribution of tents
and blankets is nearing its end.

5.  On the food side, another seven villages were targeted on 30 March,
which means a total of almost 14,000 families have been reached with the
distribution of about 1,200 MTs of food.

6.  Regarding the health sector, WHO-coordinated mobile teams have been
reduced. Further to the reports in the Situation Report No 7 (para 5),
some earthquake victims are still being identified through the mobile
teams. Based on reports from 13 mobile teams covering the area over the
past few days, the most prevalent cases are of acute respiratory
infections (ARI), which may have been increased by the earlier lack of
shelter.

7.  WHO has begun household surveys in a few villages to identify health
vulnerabilities. The NGOs Relief International and Samaritan's Purse will
join WHO in the coming days. The initial feedback is quite positive with
no cases of malnourished or unaccompanied children.

8.  The water situation has improved further with six out of seven water
distribution sites operational. This has been assured through the
coordinated work of UNICEF, ACTED, IRC, Concern and FOCUS.

9.  UNICEF has sent a total of 30 tents to cover needs for four schools in
the area. Continued disbursement of tents and supplies should ensure that
all 12 schools in Nahrin and 9 in Burka districts could open during the
coming week.

10.  Halo Trust has been joined by UN mine-action to not only map out
mines in the area but also train relief workers, particularly drivers, in
mine awareness.

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

12.  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.

13.  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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