Pakistan devastated by floods
Published on 05 August 2010
Up to 1,400 people have died in the flooding that has devastated Pakistan throughout the last week. It has been estimated that these are the worst floods experienced by the country for around 80 years since 1929. The floods have affected roughly 2.5 million people since they began and at least 27,000 of those are still waiting to be evacuated from affected areas in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa according to the UN World Health Organization (WHO).
People remain stranded on rooftops in some of the worst affected areas, which are Peshawar, Nowshera, Charsada, Swat, Shangla, Kohistan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Upper Neelam Valley in Azad Jammu and Kashmir. These areas are also some of the poorest in Pakistan where WHO are already working with displaced persons affected by violence along the Afghan border.
The country’s infrastructure has been shattered; roads and bridges have been destroyed as well as airports and phone services making it incredibly difficult, and in some cases impossible, to reach some areas with aid. Over 25,000 homes have been lost to the catastrophic flooding leaving many homeless as entire communities have been swept away.
One major concern is access to clean drinking water. Contaminated water has increased cases of diarrhoea and could lead to a spread of dengue fever, cholera and malaria. Khalid Randhawa, the district health officer for Rawalpindi District in the northern province of Punjab said, "standing water had increased the chances of a spike in dengue fever in the weeks to come." Unfortunately some aid posts have also been affected by the flooding and medicine stocks have been lost or damaged meaning there is a shortage of supplies and the need for health provisions is pressing. Flood victim Ekram Safi exclaimed:
"There is no medicine for us. There is no water for us. There is no meal for us. We don't have anything."
The Pakistani government is being criticised for slow mobilization of aid and for not doing enough to alleviate the problem at hand. Complaints have been made and it is a growing concern that Islamist groups, such as those who helped give aid after the 2005 earthquake, will try to exploit the government’s failure and conscript disenchanted civilians.
Despite the government’s slow mobilisation international aid agencies and governments have pledged funds to meet Pakistan’s humanitarian need. The UK have promised $8 million to provide safe drinking water and sanitation; the UN have dedicated $10 million from their Emergency Support Fund; and the US have pledged $10 million and has sent helicopters, emergency food supplies and mobile water treatments amongst other commodities. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed her sympathy:
""The Pakistani people are friends and partners, and the United States is standing with them as the tragic human toll mounts from flooding in Northwest Pakistan."
WHO have been distributing food since the floods broke out and have reached over 35,000 victims and aim to help 150,000 families over the next couple of months. World Food Programme Executive Director Josette Sheeran stated:
"We are deeply saddened to hear that so many people who have already suffered terribly in recent years are now seeing their lives washed away. We stand with them as they deal with this enormous shock."
More storms are forecast for August, which will only worsen the situation, as river levels will rise. It is therefore important that the promise of aid from NGOs and international governments are forthcoming as the country is in a perilous situation that is threatening to grow worse as more rain is imminent, disease has potential to spread and people become displaced from their homes.
Author: Rachael Bristow | AIDF