IRIN
PAKISTAN: Winterised tents still in very short supply in quake zone
23 November 2004


[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United 
Nations]

MEIRA, 23 November (IRIN) - Farman Khan and his family are fortunate. 
They have a tent, into which they crawl every night, hoping to gain some 
respite from the icy winds that bring temperatures down to freezing 
point as soon as the sun slips behind the mountains.

But the flimsy canvas shelter, which has served as home for Farman, 36, 
his wife Zakia, 30, and their three children since 14 October - a week 
after the devastating regional quake that killed at least 80,000 people 
- can do little to protect the family of survivors.

The situation is aggravated by the fact that Zakia, and her eldest son, 
Babar, 11, both have broken legs which are still in plaster. Their 
limited mobility makes them more vulnerable to the cold.

"I have been trying to get a better tent for nearly two weeks now. At 
present, all of us quite literally freeze each night - but we still know 
we are luckier than the many who still have no tents at all," Farman 
told IRIN at the large tent village he lives in at Meira, a small town 
located south of Battagram, 150 km north of the capital, Islamabad.

Nearly 2,000 other survivors live at the same tent village, one of the 
largest in the area. But none of their tents are adequately winterised.

Across quake-devastated areas in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province 
(NWFP) and in Pakistani-administered Kashmir, at least 390,000 tents 
have been distributed since the quake. Another 150,000 are still 
required for shelter victims. However, according to estimates by relief 
agencies, only a small proportion of these are winterised, or even 
protected with plastic sheeting.

In some cases, amid the rows of tents standing in clearings across the 
devastated district of Battagram, incongruously cheerful, multi-coloured 
plastic tents, intended to serve as toys for children, can be spotted 
alongside the somewhat more sturdy canvas shelters. It is obvious they 
can offer even less protection to the people who huddle inside them as 
the sun sets.

In the initial post-earthquake panic that gripped the country, 
volunteers and charitable organisations had distributed every available 
tent to survivors, believing they could offer at least some shelter.

While the acute shortage of tents faced in the early days of the quake 
has eased off, the delivery of shelters that can protect survivors from 
the harsh Himalayan winter [something missing here??].

Those on the ground in the area say the situation is critical. "Just 
look around, there are hardly any winterised tents here and already snow 
is beginning to fall in areas of Allai, just a short distance away," 
Battagram District Coordinator Officer (DCO) Abdul Halim told IRIN.

He added: "There is simply no time left now. People will begin to die of 
pneumonia, or develop frostbite, without shelter."

Dr Abdul Jamil, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) team leader in 
Battagram, warned that many deaths would take place unless people were 
provided with warm shelters. Like many others, he feared a second wave 
of deaths as the winter set in.

The Pakistani military and international relief agencies have been 
better able to coordinate relief in many quake-affected areas over the 
past two weeks.

They are well aware of the desperation of the situation. As part of a 
drive it has termed 'Operation Winter Race', the International 
Organization for Migration (IOM) has begun airlifting building 
materials, shelter repair kits and blankets to communities located at 
altitudes above 5,000 metres.

The IOM plans to deliver 10,000 shelter repair kits in affected areas by 
the end of November, and believes this will enable survivors to 
construct rooms that can offer them some protection from the elements.

Teams of Pakistani soldiers have been dispatched to areas most likely to 
be cut off by snowfall within weeks, to build 'warm room' shelters which 
they hope may help people stay alive through a winter that metrological 
experts say is among the harshest anywhere in the world.

But, while the focus remains on high altitude areas from where affected 
populations have refused to leave, people in tent villages lower down, 
such as that at Meira, say not enough is being done to protect them. "We 
live under flimsy pieces of canvas, which are drenched even by a 
drizzle. Many of us heat bricks and stones to place in our beds at night 
to try and keep the children warm," said Hafeeza Begum, 56, who with her 
son and his family, lives in a tent in the devastated town.

Gesturing towards the children, many with runny noses and hacking 
coughs, she said: "Look, they are all sick. They will only get sicker 
unless they can be kept warm." The fact that many of the children are 
still dressed only in thin cotton shirts, with slippers on bare feet, 
contributes to their worsening health situation.

More than six weeks after the earthquake, shelter remains the most 
urgent requirement for survivors. Each evening, as the sun vanishes 
behind the horizon, people are reminded once more of this.

"We wear every item of clothing we have all at once to keep from 
freezing. I rub the hands and feet of my wife and children to bring the 
blood to them - but when it grows colder, even this will not be enough 
to keep us alive," said Farman, as he adjusts the thin sheet of plastic 
lying over his tent.

The increasingly desperate father hopes that changing its position will 
somehow provide some additional protection from the cold the family, 
like thousands others, so desperately needs.


IRIN photos and articles of the Asia earthquake impact are available to 
media and members of the humanitarian community free-of-charge. Articles 
can be accessed at www.IRINnews.org. Full-sized images suitable for 
publications can be downloaded directly from the public photo 
library:www.irinnews.org/photogallery/iringallery .  To search for 
appropriate photos select 'Pakistan' under the Country search dropdown 
box.

New photos and articles are added daily.


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