Earthquakes in eastern Afghanistan kill more than 800 people

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) – A strong earthquake killed 800 people and injured more than 2,500 people in the east before shaking the tile rub and raw in search of his missing loved one. Afghanistanaccording to figures provided on Monday by the Taliban government.

The 6.0 magnitude earthquake on Sunday hit a town in Kunar province near Jalalabad in nearby Nangarhar province, causing great damage.

One resident of Nurgarh district, one of the worst areas in Kunar, said almost the entire village had been destroyed.

“The children are under the tiled rub. The elderly are under the tiled rub. The young people are under the tiled rub,” said the villager who did not give his name.

“We need help here,” he pleaded. “We need to come here and join us. Let’s pull out those buried. No one can remove the bodies from under the tiled rubber.”

The earthquake struck just before midnight, and is centrally located 27km (17 miles) east-northeast of Jalalabad, 8km (5 miles), deep, the US Geological Survey said. Shallow earthquakes tend to cause more damage. Several aftershocks continued.

In the footage, rescuers took people injured by helicopters from the collapsed building and desperately dug up the tiles with their hands, so they took them to the helicopter.

The Taliban Zabihullah Mujahid, the government’s chief spokesman, said at a press conference on Monday that the death toll rose to at least 800, with more than 2,500 people injured. He said most of the victims were in Kunar.

The earthquake was felt in parts of Pakistan, including the capital Islamabad. There were no reports of casualties or damage.

The house collapsed and people cried out for help

Eastern Afghanistan is a mountainous region with remote areas, and earthquakes are exacerbating communication. Blocked roads force aid workers to walk for 4-5 hours to reach the survivors. Dozens of flights operate inside and outside Nangarhar Airport, transporting injured people to hospitals.

Afghanistan buildings are primarily low-rise structures of concrete and bricks, with tending to have rural homes and homes in areas made from mud bricks and wood. Many are poorly built.

One survivor said he saw the house collapse in front of him and people screaming for help.

Sadiqullah, who lives in the Maza Dara area of ​​Nurgal, said he was woken up by a deep boom that sounded like a storm was approaching. Like many Afghans, he uses only one name.

He ran to where the children were sleeping and rescued the three. He came back to grab the rest of his family as the room fell on top of him.

“I was half-hearted and couldn’t leave,” he told The Associated Press by phone from Nangarhar Hospital. “My wife and two sons are dead, my dad is injured and I am hospitalized with me. We were locked up for 3-4 hours until people from other areas arrived and pulled me out.”

He said it felt like the whole mountain was shaking.

“The numbers could increase.”

Rescue operations are underway, and medical teams from Nangarhar’s Kunar and the capital Kabul have arrived in the area, said Sharafat Zaman, a spokesman for the Ministry of Health.

Zaman said many areas were unable to report casualties figures and “expected to change” as deaths and injuries are reported.

The chief spokesman Mujahid said helicopters reached several areas but road trips were difficult. “There are some villages where the injured and dead have not been recovered from Kura Rub, so the numbers could increase,” he told journalists.

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said the earthquake strengthened existing humanitarian agendas in Afghanistan and encouraged international donors to support relief efforts.

“This adds death and destruction to other challenges, such as drought and the forced return of millions of Afghans from neighbouring countries,” Grandi wrote to X.

Search and rescue support

According to Sherin Ibrahim, country director for the aid agency, the roads and the entire community were blocked by access to nearby towns and hospitals, with 2,000 victims reported within the first 12 hours.

“We were able to act quickly, but we are deeply afraid of the additional tension this will have on Afghanistan’s overall humanitarian response,” Ibrahim said. ” Global funding reduction It has dramatically hampered our ability to respond to the ongoing humanitarian crisis. ”

In a statement, the International Federation of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent Association said immediate needs include search and rescue support, emergency medical care and medical supplies, food, clean water and restoration of road access to isolated communities.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif said he was deeply saddened by the events in Afghanistan. “Our hearts are directed at the victims and their families. In this regard, we are ready to expand all possible support,” he said in X.

Pakistan has expelled tens of thousands of Afghans Over the past year, many of them have lived in the country for decades as refugees. at least 1.2 million Afghans According to a June report from UNHCR, this year has been forced to return from Iran and Pakistan so far.

A magnitude 6.3 earthquake occurred Afghanistan on October 7th, 2023Then there are strong aftershocks. The Taliban government estimated that at least 4,000 people had died from the trembling.

The United Nations has reduced the number of deaths by around 1,500. Attacking Afghanistan in recent memories was the most fatal natural disaster.

According to the International Rescue Committee, Sunday’s latest earthquake is likely to “warn the scale of humanitarian needs” caused by the 2023 disaster.

———

Associated Press journalist Susan Fraser contributed to the report from Ankara, Turkey.