Text Only
Search

 
Relief Workers Say Need is Great in Quake-Devastated Areas


09 October 2005

Hundreds of volunteers take part in a rescue work at the site of the collapsed 10-story apartment building in Islamabad, Saturday
Hundreds of volunteers take part in a rescue work at the site of the collapsed 10-story apartment building in Islamabad, Saturday
Relief workers in Pakistan are scrambling to locate and reach survivors after Saturday's devastating earthquake. Rescue teams say landslides and rugged terrain have kept them from reaching parts of the most severely affected regions. With nearly 20,000 people killed, rescue workers say removing and burying the dead is another daunting task.

Sigurd Hanson, the country director for the U.S.-based aid agency, World Vision, says key access roads remain blocked by landslides. He says it is still not clear how soon aid workers will be able to reach many of the quake's victims and assess the extent of the damage in those areas.

Mr. Hanson says, in addition to shelter and medical supplies, many of the hardest hit areas need help tending the injured and burying the dead.

"Dead bodies are everywhere. Hospitals are completely full. Wounded are just
lying around on the compound," Mr. Hanson says. "Unfortunately, when the earthquake initially hit,
so many children are in school, so hundreds of school children died."

Pakistani rescue workers remove a body from rubble of 10-story apartment building that collapsed in Islamabad, Pakistan
Pakistani rescue workers remove a body from rubble of 10-story apartment building that collapsed in Islamabad, Pakistan
Pakistani officials have also acknowledged that the country was unprepared for
a crisis of this magnitude, and desperately needs modern rescue equipment.

Even in the country's capital, Islamabad, where a 10-story building collapsed
Saturday, a local rescue worker said there is enough manpower, but, without
proper equipment, digging for survivors is slow and frustrating work.

"People cannot do much with their hands, and with not having the right kind of
equipment. That is the problem," the rescue worker says.

Two days after the building caved in, authorities say more than 50 survivors
may remain beneath the mountain of broken cement.

Western countries are quickly stepping up to try and fill the gap. Several
teams with equipment have already come from countries offering aid, including the United States, Thailand, Japan and China.

emailme.gif E-mail This Article
printerfriendly.gif Print Version

  Related Stories
Pakistan Seeking Aid for Earthquake Victims
Pakistan Interior Minister: 'Situation Is Very Grim'
US Sends Aid To South Asia Quake Victims
US Sending Helicopters, Supplies to Quake Areas
 
  Top Story
Soldiers, Family Come Together To Grieve at Fort Hood  Video clip available

  More Stories
Obama Pays Tribute to Fort Hood Shooting Victims   Audio Clip Available  Video clip available
Details Emerge About Alleged Fort Hood Shooter  Audio Clip Available  Video clip available
Washington Area Sniper Executed
Bomb Rocks Northwestern Pakistan
China Ready to Welcome President Obama  Video clip available
US Urges North Korea Not to Escalate Tensions in Yellow Sea
British PM Defends Military Mission in Afghanistan  Audio Clip Available
Lebanon's Unity Government Convenes for First Time
Tropical Storm Ida Downgraded; Moves Inland
Report: Africa's Disappearing Wetlands Produce 'Alarming' Levels of Greenhouse Gas
IEA Urges Action on Climate Change
Somali Pirates Deny Arms Seizure  Audio Clip Available
Cross-Examination Begins in War Crimes Trial of Former Liberian President  Audio Clip Available
US Development of H1N1 Vaccine Hits Snag  Video clip available
Asia to Welcome President Obama  Video clip available
Obama Makes First China Tour as Economic Interdependence Grows  Audio Clip Available  Video clip available
APEC Marks 20 Years, Looks to Future of Regional Trade  Audio Clip Available
Clinton Urges 'Compassion' for Americans Detained in Iran  Audio Clip Available
World War II Museum Expansion Aims at Younger Generations  Audio Clip Available  Video clip available
North Carolina World War II Veterans Honored in Washington  Video clip available