According to initial reports, more than 350 people have been killed and over 2,000 injured in Afghanistan and Pakistan after a magnitude-7.5 earthquake hit Northern Afghanistan Monday. The earthquake has left thousands of Afghan families homeless after their homes were damaged or destroyed.
“With winter around the corner, it is a very bad time for people to lose their homes in Afghanistan. It is getting colder at night, and the low temperatures constitute a significant health risk to those families now left without proper shelter,” said Kjersti Haraldseide, acting country director for NRC in Afghanistan.
The earthquake struck an area in the Northern part of Afghanistan where NRC is operating (details). NRC Teams from offices in Jalalabad, Kunar, Kunduz and Mazar are now involved in coordinating the humanitarian response following the earthquake. Starting today, NRC will carry out missions in 8 district in Nangarhar and Kunar provinces, where more than a thousand families have been affected by the earthquake. NRC will also visit affected families in Kunduz city that have had their houses destroyed. These missions will determine how NRC can help people in need.
“We are working hard to establish a clear picture of damages and needs in the areas affected. We are assessing how we can quickly and effectively help people in need with emergency aid such as temporary shelter, food, blankets and cash assistance,” said Haraldseide.
NRC has eleven field offices and 439 employees in Afghanistan, working to assist displaced people in the country. None of our employees were injured in the earthquake. The NRC field office in Kunduz sustained some physical damages.
