IRIN
PAKISTAN: Thousands still entombed under quake rubble
22 June 2006


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

HATTIAN BALA, 22 June (IRIN) - Pointing to the remains of his shattered 
house, 35-year-old Ghulam Rasool explained how six members of his family 
died when a huge landslide destroyed his village during the 8 October 
earthquake that hit northern Pakistan last year, leaving more than 
75,000 dead.

"If I was sure that I would find the dead bodies of my beloved sons, 
mother, father, wife and my little brother, I would have worked day and 
night but I know it is very difficult for me to search for them in such 
a huge hill of debris and rubble," Rasool said.

Rasool's village was located in the mountainous area of Hattian Bala, 60 
km northwest of Muzaffarabad, capital of Pakistani-administered Kashmir. 
According to government figures more than 10,000 people lost their lives 
in the area. Villagers said hundreds of dead remain entombed in the sea 
of rubble that covers many settlements in the area.

Government authorities have said that recovering the dead from these 
villages was too difficult and not enough workers were available to 
undertake the grisly work.

"There are still between 800 and 900 dead bodies belonging to Lodia 
Abad, Batsher, Bail, Nanian and Dhakan Padar villages missing under the 
debris from the landslide," Raja Mahmood Shahid, an official at the 
district commissioner's office in Hattian Bala, told IRIN.

"But it is very difficult to search for them in such a huge collection 
of debris and ruins," he expalined.

More than eight months after the earthquake, most of the dead have been 
recovered from the areas devastated. But in some isolated areas the dead 
remain where they lost their lives when buildings collapsed on them or 
landslides obliterated their communities.

The United Nations Joint Logistics Centre (UNJLC) in Muzaffarabad has 
warned that monsoon rains may trigger further landslides in Pakistan's 
quake-ravaged north, which could impede relief efforts to thousands of 
quake-affected people.


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Email: IrinAsia@IRINnews.org



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