Two powerful aftershocks struck eastern Afghanistan 12 hours apart, triggering fears of more deaths and destruction yesterday in a region where earthquakes have killed about 2,200 people as rescuers battled mountainous terrain and harsh weather.
Survivors in the earthquake-prone region are scrambling for basic amenities as the United Nations and other agencies warn of a critical need for funds, food, medical supplies and shelter, with the World Health Organisation seeking funds of $4 million.
The latest aftershocks follow two earthquakes that ravaged a nation already crushed by war, poverty and shrinking aid. The Taliban administration estimated 2,205 deaths and 3,640 injuries by Thursday.
Ambulances ferried to hospital 13 people injured after Thursday night’s tremor of magnitude 6.2 in Nangarhar province, with its epicentre in the district of Shiwa near the Pakistan border, said regional health spokesman Naqibullah Rahimi.
Ten were discharged after treatment and three were in stable condition, he added.
A witness said details of the damage were still being collected after continuous aftershocks in Nangarhar, with its capital Jalalabad about 150km from Kabul.
Yesterday’s earthquake of magnitude 5.4 struck the southeast at a depth of 10km, the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) said, just hours after Thursday’s event.
With houses built mostly of dry masonry, stone, and timber, some families preferred to stay in the open to guard against shocks, rather than return home.
Residents of the Nurgal district of Kunar have left their homes to live in tents, on the surrounding high land near a river, or in the open, for fear of more tremors.
Fallen rocks and earth blocked access to some badly affected villages, holding up rescue and relief efforts, they said.
The week’s first earthquake of magnitude 6, just before midnight on Sunday, was one of Afghanistan’s deadliest, unleashing damage and destruction in Nangarhar and Kunar provinces when it struck at a shallow depth of 10km.
A second quake of magnitude 5.5 on Tuesday caused panic and interrupted rescue efforts as it sent rocks sliding down mountains and cut off roads to villages in remote areas.
The two initial quakes flattened villages in both provinces, destroying more than 6,700 homes, and rescue workers pulled bodies from the rubble on Thursday.
Afghanistan’s earthquakes mainly happen in the Hindu Kush mountain range, where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet.
Landslides and debris on key roads hampered relief work, the WHO said, as it called for more funds to provide healthcare and disease surveillance.
It warned of the risk of disease, stemming from overcrowded shelters, unsafe water and inappropriate waste management, while an influx of Afghans recently deported from Pakistan strains the fragile healthcare system.
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