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2546

Heavy rain lashing for last several days have wreaked havoc in different areas of Baluchistan as houses collapsed and roads washed away causing deaths in many areas. The rain also continued to lash on the provincial capital, Quetta.

Heavy rains with thunderstorm were also reported in Zhob, Loralai, Musa Khel, Harnai, Dukki, Pishin, Khanozai, Kalat, Mastung, Sibi, Bolan, Awaran, Nasirabad, Jaffarabad, Jhal Magsi, Dera Bugti and other areas of Baluchistan province which caused damages to mud houses and roads.

Two children were reportedly washed away in the flash flood and a man was killed while another eight people have sustained injuries due to lightning in the border area of Chaman.

Several roads were washed away due to hill torrents in Chaman, Toba Achakzai, Toba Kakari, Gwadar, Turbat and Khuzdar districts.

Power supply was also suspended in several areas due to heavy raining.

As per Pakistan Metrological Department (PMD), heavy rains are also expected in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the next 4 days with High Risk of flash flooding in surrounding areas and very likely to intensify on Friday evening/night. The KP Government has already requested KP Provincial Disaster Management Authority and FATA Disaster Management Authority to be on alert and ready to respond should the situation worsen.

Community World Service Asia is currently monitoring the situation. Its emergency response teams are ready and will start emergency response activities if required.

Contacts:
Allan A. Calma
Deputy Director
Disaster Management Program
Email: allan.calma@communityworldservice.asia
Cell: +92 301 5801621

Muhammad Fazal
Associate Director
Emergencies/DRR/Climate Change
Email: fazil.sardar@communitryworldservice.asia
Cell: +92 332 5586134

Alison Sneddon
Senior Communications Officer
Email: alison.sneddon@communityworldservice.asia

Sources:
www.samaa.tv
www.ndma.gov.pk
www.nation.com.pk

2727
DurationSep 10, 2015 — Mar 10, 2016
LocationBara Teshil of Khyber Agency
Key Activities
  • Free Medical Consultations through Mobile health clinics
  • Provision of Free Medicines
  • Ante Natal and Post Natal Care Services
  • Sessions on Health and Hygiene issues
Participants20,000 flood affected people

2501
DurationAug 15, 2015 — Mar 31, 2016
LocationDistrict Sujawal of Sindh Province, Pakistan
Key Activities
  • Free Medical Consultations through Mobile health clinics
  • Provision of Free Medicines
  • Ante Natal and Post Natal Care Services
  • Sessions on Health and Hygiene issues
Participants20,000 flood affected people

2397
DurationSep 07, 2015 — Mar 06, 2016
LocationDistrict Haripur, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Key Activities
  • Vocational Trainings to Afghan refugee and Pakistani girls
Participants50 (45 Afghan refugees and 5 Pakistani girls)

2386

Ameer khan, 39, migrated from Kalam to Swat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, around three years ago where he was living in a rented house of two rooms, a kitchen and bathroom. To support his family of ten including his mother, wife, six daughters, a son and a disabled father-in-law, Ameer khan sold peanuts on a cart in the market during winter. In the warmer months, he used the same cart to sell local cold drinks. Although with a daily wage of PKR 400/, Khan was not making enough to cover all of his household expenses, he was still able to manage somehow.

Khan’s struggles were amplified in the aftermath of an earthquake that hit Swat along with other areas of Northern Pakistan on October 26, 2015. While one room and a boundary wall were completely damaged, the other room was partially broken thus becoming unlivable. Khan was left with no choice but to shift his family to a neighbor’s home for a few days. Due to limited space, however, he had to bring them back to his own house where the only undamaged space, to live in, was the kitchen. To accommodate everyone in a single room, Khan had to sleep under the open sky during freezing winter nights.

“Ameer and his family have suffered a lot due to this earthquake and despite the damage to his house, he has not been included in the government’s earthquake survivor’s compensation list for reconstruction,”

says Jamil Ahmad, Kisan councilor, local government representative of district Swat.

“We tried our best to include him but unfortunately our efforts were futile as the list had been finalized and could not accommodate more people,” he added.

Among the more urgent needs of the communities, winterization support tops the list of most prioritized needs. Having identified the urgency of providing relief to earthquake-affected communities, Community World Service Asia, has thus far, provided support to 504 families through the funding support of UMCOR in the area.

Ameer Khan was also among the selected right holders for the winterization support assistance.

“I am very thankful to Community World Service Asia for helping me in catering to the most urgent needs of my family. With this support, at least we have something to cover ourselves with during this extreme weather”,

he said.

 

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One of the students giving a presentation during a session 2
One of the students giving a presentation during a session
One of the students giving a presentation during a session
Student during a group exercise during the three-day training on “Introduction to NGOs” 3
Student during a group exercise during the three-day training on “Introduction to NGOs”
Student during a group exercise during the three-day training on “Introduction to NGOs”
Mr. Sufyan Sultan (Lead trainer) conducting a session during the training 4
Mr. Sufyan Sultan (Lead trainer) conducting a session during the training
Mr. Sufyan Sultan (Lead trainer) conducting a session during the training
Mr. Rizwan Iqbal (Project Coordinator – CIP) presenting a certificate to one of the participants of the training at the University of Peshawar 5
Mr. Rizwan Iqbal (Project Coordinator – CIP) presenting a certificate to one of the participants of the training at the University of Peshawar
Mr. Rizwan Iqbal (Project Coordinator – CIP) presenting a certificate to one of the participants of the training at the University of Peshawar
Mr. Rizwan Qazi (one of the facilitator for training) with the participant of training during an energizer exercise 6
Mr. Rizwan Qazi (one of the facilitator for training) with the participant of training during an energizer exercise
Mr. Rizwan Qazi (one of the facilitator for training) with the participant of training during an energizer exercise
Students of BS Social Work briefing other participants about through presentation on the outcome of group exercise during 3-days training on Introduction to NGOs 7
Students of BS Social Work briefing other participants about through presentation on the outcome of group exercise during 3-days training on Introduction to NGOs
Students of BS Social Work briefing other participants about through presentation on the outcome of group exercise during 3-days training on Introduction to NGOs
Mr. Moazzam Ali (Lead trainer for the training) during the opening ceremony, describing the overall purpose of the training to the participants 8
Mr. Moazzam Ali (Lead trainer for the training) during the opening ceremony, describing the overall purpose of the training to the participants
Mr. Moazzam Ali (Lead trainer for the training) during the opening ceremony, describing the overall purpose of the training to the participants
Mr. Rizwan Iqbal (Lead trainer for the training) during a session with the participants 9
Mr. Rizwan Iqbal (Lead trainer for the training) during a session with the participants
Mr. Rizwan Iqbal (Lead trainer for the training) during a session with the participants
Group Photo: Students of M. Sc. Social Work Program with Ms. Bushra Naheed Incharge Social Work Department and Mr. Arshad Abbasi (Lecturer) along with the facilitator Mr. Sufyan Sultan during 3-days training on “Introduction to NGOs” for the student of University of the Punjab 1
Group Photo: Students of M. Sc. Social Work Program with Ms. Bushra Naheed Incharge Social Work Department and Mr. Arshad Abbasi (Lecturer) along with the facilitator Mr. Sufyan Sultan during 3-days training on “Introduction to NGOs” for the student of University of the Punjab
Group Photo: Students of M. Sc. Social Work Program with Ms. Bushra Naheed Incharge Social Work Department and Mr. Arshad Abbasi (Lecturer) along with the facilitator Mr. Sufyan Sultan during 3-days training on “Introduction to NGOs” for the student of University of the Punjab

 

Community World Service Asia organized a three-day training for University of Peshawar from January 26 – 28, 2016 and for University of Punjab on 5- 7 February 2016 on “Introduction to NGOs”. 23 students from the BS Social Work program participated in the event in Peshawar and 28 students from the M. SC Social Work participated in the event in Lahore.

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A sister holding her baby brother while waiting to see the doctor at the BHU in Kuzkhana

In response to the 7.5 magnitude earthquake that struck the Hindukish mountain range on October 26th this year, affecting thousands of people in northern Afghanistan and Pakistan, Community World Service Asia set up a mobile health unit in district Shangla.  The Mobile unit started its activities on October 30th and continued operation as a static Basic Health Unit in Kuzkana, Shangla, after two weeks and still operational.

In its thirty two days of activities till December 10th, the Health Unit days catered to 4090 earthquake affected community members in its Outpatient Department (OPD),of which 2271 patients were women and infants, and 1820 men and children.  A total of 1033 laboratory tests were conducted to diagnose illnesses among affected communities in the mobile Laboratory and BHU.

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2495

The earthquake 26 October, 7.5 magnitude earthquake affected sixteen provinces in Afghanistan and two provinces along with the FATA region in Pakistan. It left a total of 395 people dead, 2,269 injured and 116,639 houses damaged in both the countries. Infrastructural damage was most extensive near the epicentre of the quake in both the countries. Access to the affected provinces is most difficult due to the volatile security situation in Afghanistan and the rugged terrain in both the quake hit countries.

The decreasing temperatures in the affected zones of both the countries is another hurdle in accessibility to the areas. With no appropriate shelter, the earthquake hit communities are forced to face the harsh winter in compromising conditions, struggling to meet their basic survival requirements.

Pakistan: As per the latest information released by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), so far 280 people have died, 1,745 have been injured and a total of 98,094 houses have been damaged across the country. Out of the total houses damaged, 92 percent were located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province. Damages to infrastructure such as roads, bridges and communication networks, in the affected areas are also significant.

Protection against the near freezing temperatures is the priority need of the affected communities. In this regard, winterization support is a highly recommended form of assistance by the district government. This is followed by health services which also a critical need of the quake hit communities who are exposed to the dropping temperatures without adequate winter supplies.

Afghanistan: A total of 115 people have died, 524 people have been injured and 18,545 houses have been damaged in Afghanistan. A recorded 6,929 houses out of the total damaged have been completely destroyed. A reported 130,093 people have been affected across the country as per the latest report, however the damage assessment is still ongoing which may result in a further increase in number of damages.

More than 50,000 people have been affected in Badakhshan province where property damage was most widespread. Access remains the major challenge in providing assistance to the earthquake affected people in Afghanistan. The primary needs of the affected communities in the country have been identified as basic household supplies, blankets, tents, hygiene kits and shelter for those families whose houses have been completely destroyed.

Quality and Accountability Related Issues

Afghanistan: Community World Service Asia has conducted a Rapid Accountability Need Assessment (RANA) with local and international organizations working on the earthquake response in Afghanistan.  Listed below are the accountability related issues that have surfaced in the assessment;

  • Organizations have less capacity to handle complaints as they do not have proper Complaint Response Mechanisms (CRM) in place or trained staff to deal with the concerns of the communities
  • Due to current developing security situation, some international organizations are unable to reach far flung and remote affected communities

Pakistan: Community World Service Asia organized an Accountability Learning and Working Group (ALWG) meeting on Nov 19, 2015 to discuss the challenges and issues faced by humanitarian actors in responding to the recent Earthquake in Pakistan.  Ten national and International organizations including UN agencies participated in the event. Listed below are the identified accountability related issues;

  • Access to the severely affected areas is still a major issue
  • 50 percent of the affected community is still waiting for compensation
  • The Government is disbursing compensation amounts through cheques however most of the earthquake affected communities do not have bank accounts to cash their cheques
  • No proper emergency evacuation system has yet been placed for children in earthquake affected areas. The schools in these areas are still not functional either.
  • Some of the organizations have provided shelters to the communities but the quality of the shelters does not take in account resilience to changing and extreme weather.
  • Some community members have started reconstructing their homes but they are not following the earthquake resilient structure guidelines.
  • Lack of coordinated assessment is still a major challenge.

Response by Community World Service Asia: Community World Service Asia’s Emergency Health Response team has provided health services through Mobile Health Units in District Shangla for 12 days where the team treated 1,853 patients, of which 975 were male patients and 878 were female. A total of 136 lab tests have also been carried out at the MHU. Since November 16th, the team has started operating as a static Basic Health Unit at UC Kuzkana in the Shangla district, where the team has assisted more than 600 patients, and carried more than a hundred lab tests so far. Community World Service Asia has also distributed one month food packages to 371 families and distributed 812 winterization kits to affected families till date. In the coming days more distributions of winterization kits will also take place.

Please follow our live photo update from the earthquake affected areas on our Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/communityworldserviceasia/ .

Contacts:
Allan A. Calma
Deputy Director
Disaster Management Program
Email: allan.calma@communityworldservice.asia
Cell: +92 301 5801621

Muhammad Fazal
Associate Director
Emergencies/DRR/Climate Change
Email: fazil.sardar@communitryworldservice.asia
Cell: +92 332 5586134

Nejabat Khan Safi
Associate Director
Disaster Management Program
Email: nejabat.safi@communitryworldservice.asia
Mobile: +93 799 326 628

Palwashay Arbab
Head of Communications
Email: palwashay.arbab@communityworldservice.asia
Ph: +92 42 3586 5338

Sources:
http://www.ndma.gov.pk/new/
http://www.pmd.gov.pk/
http://www.Reliefweb.int
OCHA Afghanistan
IOM Afghanistan

2607

An 8 year old Kainat was spotted during our visit to DHQ Alpuri. She was injured when we met her as she was held by her father, who supports a family of nine including his wife, his father, two sons and four daughters. Kainat’s family are residents of the earthquake affected village Maal of UC Kuzkana, District Shangla.

“We were all sitting in the kitchen after having lunch when the earthquake hit with full intensity. We rushed and evacuated our house and gathered in the fields outside. I was looking around at the shaking houses, mountains and trees as the earthquake continued. Then, all of a sudden, our house started to collapse around me, giving me no time to move. A wooden beam fell on my leg while at the same time some pieces of stones hit my grandfather,”

narrated Kainat’s as she recalled her experience during the devastating earthquake.

Kainat’s father added, “Nearly fifty percent of houses were destroyed in our village but the neighbors whose houses survived showed great solidarity and immediately started helping those families affected. They  helped us to rescue my daughter and my father from the rubble and quickly moved them to the hospital. We reached RHC Karora in a state of emergency, where, after being provided with first aid, we were referred to the Swat Hospital, as Kainat’s leg was broken in two places and my father was severely injured. We received a thorough treatment at the Swat Hospital; my daughter was discharged but my father is still admitted there.”

Upon inquiring about the current needs of those affected by the earthquake, he replied that the affected communities are currently seeking shelter under polythene sheets in open fields as the other villagers help in providing them with food and comfort to the best of their abilities. The weather is becoming extremely cold. Tents, blankets and food items are most needed for families like Kainat’s to survive and recover.

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