Brings Us to Our Knees

Image: Washington Post

On Thursday, Dawn reported that rescue workers recovered 16 bodies from under rubble in Kamsaar Village, just north of Muzzafarabad in Pakistan-Administered Kashmir. The people, traveling in a passenger coach, were reportedly trapped in the earthquake that struck Kashmir in 2005, a natural disaster that killed about 74,500 people and injured over 100,000 in the region.

It has been over four years since one of Pakistan’s most devastating earthquakes and we are still recovering victims. We still bear the scars of the thousands of lives lost. And yet, despite the fact that man-made conflict prevails throughout the world, that discrimination and violence have torn countries apart, nature has the power to bring us all to our knees. In the aftermath of earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, and cyclones, we come together.

For days, we have watched news and updates on the 7.0-magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti on January 12. On Thursday, a Haitian Red Cross official said as many as 50,000 may have been killed, while another government official estimated the death toll may reach 100,000. An International Red Cross official stated that up to 3 million people may have been affected by the quake.

On Thursday, CNN reported that Haitians took rescue efforts into their own hands, working for 24 hours with chisels, blowtorches, and their bare hands to free a man pinned under a collapsed school. The news agency added, “Those scenes of Haitians banding together to free their neighbors played out across the capital while the few rescue crews who managed to make it into the hillside city came face-to-face with the death and destruction caused by the massive quake.”

Watching the news, I was reminded of similar scenes that played out in the aftermath of the 2005 earthquake in Pakistan , when residents in Islamabad pitched in to help lift bricks and rubble in F-10, helping recover survivors from a collapsed apartment building. Hundreds of people collected blankets, food, tents, and clothes for the people displaced in Kashmir. Similar scenarios also took place following the tsunami in 2004, a disaster that killed nearly 230,000 people in 14 countries.

In the aftermath of Haiti, the global response and attention has been overwhelming. President Obama has promised $100 million in aid, and said the U.S. would grant “every element of our national capacity, our diplomacy and development assistance, the power of our military and most importantly, the compassion of our country” to Haiti.

In less than two days, a campaign “done solely through text messages and made viral on networking sites like Twitter and Facebook has raised more than $5 million for the Red Cross’s relief work in Haiti,” reported CNN today. Red Cross spokesman spokesman Jonathan Aiken described it as “a phenomenal number that’s never been achieved before.” Lance Armstrong posted on Twitter that his LiveStrong Foundation would give $230,000 to humanitarian aid groups. On Friday, January 22, George Clooney will host a live telethon to benefit the victims of Haiti, airing from 8-10 pm EST on all MTV channels worldwide along with ABC, NBC, HBO and CNN.

We shouldn’t have to ask why we should help Haiti. But if Pakistanis need a reason, we don’t have to look very far. Pakistan’s renowned philanthropist, Abdul Sattar Edhi has pledged $500,000 via the Edhi Foundation to relief efforts, and will reportedly travel to the country, (via Twitter user @curry_crayola). Given our own experiences with natural disasters, the Haiti earthquake should serve as a reminder about how connected we are, and how much we can do even in our small capacity.

For a list of reputable and vetted organizations you can donate to, click here.

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Responding to the Balochistan Earthquake

On Wednesday, a 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck Pakistan’s Balochistan province, killing at least 170 people and leaving thousands homeless, [see related CHUP post]. When I first heard news of the tragedy, the first thought that came to me was an image I captured in a photograph almost three years ago, [see above], when I visited Balakot. The town, located in the NWFP, had been completely destroyed by the October 2005 earthquake, a disaster that killed about 74,500 people and injured over 100,000 in the region. It was one the largest natural disasters to afflict Pakistan, and was labeled the 14th deadliest earthquake of all time. Upon arriving in Balakot, we stopped to survey the devastation from a hilltop. The haunting image I captured above immortalized the emotions we were experiencing at that very moment – feelings of helplessness and concern, sadness and despair. The most overpowering emotion, though, was how small we felt amid the vast stretch of destruction and rubble that lay before us. It seems that no matter how much destruction we can cause by our own hands, through suicide bombings, violence, and intolerance, the power of God and nature will always bring us to our knees.

Those same emotions sat with me this morning, as I read article after article detailing the increasing casualty numbers in Balochistan and the relief efforts underway to recover survivors amid the rubble. This is the same conflict-ridden province that was hit by a cyclone last year, a disaster that destroyed hundreds of thousands of homes. Today, yet another tragedy has occurred, this time on the brink of a harsh winter. Mohammed Hashim, a resident in Wam, one of the hardest hit villages, told the AFP, “We are doomed…We have nothing left to save our families from the cold in the night.” The news agency reported, “Destitute survivors sat beside campfires as the night brought sub-zero temperatures to the mountainous quake zone bordering Afghanistan,” waiting for medical aid and supplies. The AFP’s correspondent in Wam reported that emergency tents had still not arrived by Wednesday night, “forcing exhausted villagers to hunker down in the ruined shells of their homes.” Many of the residents had spent “the day in a desperate search for loved ones or burying the dead in mass graves, as aftershocks nearly as big as the initial quake pounded the landscape, sending rocks spewing from nearby peaks and sparking fresh panic.”

If the earthquake in 2005 taught us anything, it’s that with immense tragedy comes the outpouring of human compassion. I still remember in 2005, when residents in Islamabad pitched in to help lift bricks and rubble in F-10, to help recover survivors from a collapsed apartment building. I remember how many people donated blankets, warm clothes, and tents to those suffering in the afflicted areas near Kashmir. Let us showcase that same compassion in the aftermath of this tragedy. We cannot stop the occurrence of natural disasters, but we can help restore what was left in their wake.

How you can help:

• Visit the page set up via Wikia Pakistan to learn more about the grassroots relief effort
• Organize drives to collect blankets, warm clothes, and money for tents to send to the affected areas
• Contact an Edhi Foundation center in your area to learn how you can donate your time/money for the relief efforts
• Islamic Relief is now accepting donations for relief efforts on their website, [thanks, Five Rupees].

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BREAKING NEWS: At Least 150 Dead in Pakistan Earthquake

UPDATE [10/31]: The AP reported, “Doctors said Friday they were running out of drugs and artificial limbs for victims of the earthquake in southwestern Pakistan amid fears that the death toll would climb beyond 300.”

UPDATE [10/30 1100 EST]: Pakistani soldiers handed out tents, blankets, and sleeping bags to earthquake survivors on Thursday, as news agencies reported the death toll rose to 215.

UPDATE [1100 EST]: The AFP is reporting that  the death toll has now risen to at least 170. According to GEO News, “The death toll could rise as rescue workers move into more remote villages. Hundreds of others had been injured in the tremor and perhaps 15,000 left homeless and in need of help.”

On Wednesday, a 6.4-magnitude earthquake in Balochistan [southwest Pakistan] killed at least 150 people, and left thousands homeless. While many media outlets quoted 150 casualties, AAJ Television and Dawn both reported that the death toll has risen to 160, with many “believed to be buried under rubble.” The news outlets reported that about about 20 aftershocks followed the earthquake, rattling “the survivors.” AAJ quoted a resume workers in Wam, “one of the worst-hit villages where authorities were using excavators to dig mass graves,” who said, “The village has been flattened. You can’t see a house still standing. There’s destruction everywhere.” [Images from BBC News, above]

Updated newswires reported that a second earthquake occurred in the same area later in the day. According to USA Today, “The initial quake obliterated hundreds of fragile mud-and-timber homes, officials said. There were no immediate reports of casualties in the second quake, which was felt in the city of Quetta and nearby regions of both Pakistan and Afghanistan.”

According to CNN, “Ten hours after the quake, the rescue operations continued with the Pakistani army sending helicopters to ferry in blankets and relief supplies and airlift the scores of wounded.” Dawn cited Minister for Revenue and Rehabilitation Zamaruk Khan, who said “the government was preparing to provide food, shelter and medical care to survivors of the quake.” BBC News reported that the worst-hit area appeared to be Ziarat, about 50km north of Quetta, where hundreds of mostly mud and timber houses had been destroyed in five villages. Dawn quoted Ziarat district chief Dilawar Khan, who said, “Hundreds of mud houses have collapsed. We are using whatever resources we have to help the people and have asked for help from the provincial government.” [Image from Dawn]

Media outlets report that this is the deadliest earthquake since the massive earthquake that hit the Kashmir region in 2005. CHUP will continue to provide updates as they occur.

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