The Star Malaysia

Long wait for aid after quake

Pakistan survivors face blistering heat as death toll increases

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AWARAN: Tens of thousands of survivors of Pakistan’s earthquake waited for help in soaring temperatur­es, as the death toll rose to nearly 350 and anger grew at the slow pace of government aid.

More than 100,000 people made homeless by Tuesday’s 7.7-magnitude quake spent a second night in the open or under makeshift shelters as response teams struggled to reach the remote region in the southweste­rn province of Baluchista­n.

Abdul Latif Kakar, the head of Baluchista­n’s Provincial Disaster Management Authority, said the death toll stood at 348, more than 300 of them in Arawan district, with more than 500 injured.

The sheer scale of the territory

We have not received anything from the government. — ABDUL LATIF

involved is daunting – the population of Awaran is scattered over more than 21,000 sq km – and infrastruc­ture is extremely limited, with few medical facilities or even roads.

On top of the remote, rugged terrain, the area is also home to Baluch separatist rebels waging a decadelong insurgency.

Highlighti­ng the danger from militants, a helicopter carrying the head of the National DisasterMa­nagement Authority came under rocket fire in Awaran, though no damage was done and no one was hurt.

The quake is already Pakistan’s deadliest since the devastatin­g Kashmir tremor of 2005 which killed 73,000.

The toll is expected to rise further as rescue teams dig through the rubble of countless flattened mud-brick homes.

Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar told parliament “huge activity” was under way to help those affected but he admitted teams were struggling to reach some areas, even 40 hours after the quake.

The army has sent troops, medical staff and helicopter­s to help with rescue efforts, along with seven tonnes of food and a tonne of medicine.

In Arawan town, around 200 angry survivors demonstrat­ed outside government offices complainin­g they had not been given food or shelter.

“We have not received anything from the government. We have not got any relief, there is no supply of foods or medicine,” furious villager Abdul Latif, 25, said.

Temperatur­es in the arid region were reaching 42°C yesterday and many survivors said they were desperate for some relief from the blistering heat. — AFP

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