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September 27, 2013

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Survivors scavenge for food as quake toll rises to 348

Source: Agencies | September 27, 2013, Friday | Print Edition

Hungry survivors dug through rubble to find food and thousands slept under the open sky or in makeshift shelters for a second night as the death toll from Pakistan’s massive earthquake rose to 348 yesterday.

Rescuers battled to reach remote areas of the impoverished region in the wake of Tuesday’s 7.7-magnitude quake in southwestern Baluchistan province.

The quake flattened wide swathes of the Awaran district where it was centered, leaving much of the population homeless.

A spokesman for the provincial government said 348 people had been confirmed dead so far and 552 people had been injured.

“We need more tents, more medicine and more food,” Jan Mohammad Bulaidi said.

In the village of Dalbadi, almost all of the 300 mud-brick homes were destroyed. Doctors were treating some of the injured, but due to a scarcity of medicine and staff, they were mostly seen comforting the survivors.

Awaran district is one of the poorest in the country’s most impoverished province. Many people use four-wheel-drive vehicles and camels to traverse the rough terrain.

Houses made of mostly mud and handmade bricks in the quake-affected region stood little chance against the massive quake. Walls and roofs caved in, and people’s possessions were scattered on the ground.

Baluchistan is Pakistan’s largest province but also the least populated.

Medical facilities are few and often poorly stocked with supplies and qualified personnel. Awaran district has about 300,000 residents spread out over an area of 29,000 square kilometers.

Many of the injured were ferried to the port city of Karachi or Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan, for treatment.

One survivor interviewed in his Karachi hospital bed said he was working in the fields at his farm when the quake struck. “Almost all the homes have collapsed in my village,” said Sabal Khan. He said his wife was badly injured.

The local economy consists mostly of smuggling fuel from Iran or harvesting dates.

 

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