16th September 2010
It is now nearly two months since Pakistan was first hit by heavier than usual rains. A now estimated 20 million people have been affected by the worst floods in Pakistan in history. As of the 9th of September, the death toll now stands at over 1,600 with 2,700 people injured. More than 1.3 million people have been rescued and the latest assessments estimate that more than 1.8 million homes have been damaged or destroyed.
The people of Ireland have responded immediately to the Irish Red Cross Pakistan Appeal and over €400,000 has been raised to date. These funds are being used to provide immediate relief items such as food and temporary shelter and for example €40,000 of these funds has been used to purchase 2,955 family hygiene kits which benefits 20,685 individuals.
Red Cross Red Crescent Response:
Relief:
The Red Cross Red Crescent Movement has a current target of €56 million targeting to assist 130,000 families in need of humanitarian assistance over the next 18 months. To date the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement, through the Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS), has distributed relief items in Baluchistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Federal Administered Tribal Areas, Gilgit Baltistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and Sindh. As of the 1st of September relief has reached 66,969 families (468,783 individuals) with food items and 28,404 families (198,828 individuals) with non food items, including tents, tarpaulins, blankets, mosquito nets, kitchen sets and hygiene sets.
Health and Emergency Care:
The Red Cross Red Crescent Movement, through the Pakistan Red Crescent Society PRCS), has also provided emergency health services to 81,524 individuals through 32 medical health units. Treatment has been mostly for diarrhoea, respiratory infections and skin infections. In the long-term they hope to reach 130,000 families and to provide healthcare for nine months.
Water and Sanitation:
The Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS) continues their work to restore water supplies to flood affected villages. To date trained volunteers have distributed 165,000 water purification tablets to 20,000 individuals. In Sindh, the PRCS water and sanitation disaster response team has, so far, produced 116,000 litres of clean water to support dome 2,500 individuals. The PRCS has also repaired two wells which will provide water for up to 25,000 people in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and has retored six water supply systems in Charsadda benefitting 9,000 people.
Shelter:
Given the increasing impact of the flooding in the Sindh and Punjab provinces, causing mass evacuation of significant areas, it is expected that some communities will not be able to return for a minimum of three and up to six months.
The PRCS aims to meet the basic shelter needs of 85,000 affected families over the next three to nine months, while restoring 45,000 homes through the provision of clean up kits and shelter kits.
Early Recovery and Livelihoods:
The PRCS is currently training volunteers in psychological support (PSP) as it acknowledges the emerging needs of disaster stricken people.
65% of the population of Pakistan are dependent upon agriculture and more than 4 million acres of agricultural land has been submerged, destroying standing crops worth billions of euros. Over 1 million tonnes of wheat stored in warehouses has also been destroyed. The PRCS aims to support 70,000 flood affected families to re-establish their livelihoods and household economic security through the provision of cash grants or vouchers over the next 18 months.
The Irish Red Cross has received immense support from the Irish public this year, and your generosity has raised over €3million for the people of Haiti, and over €1million for those who were victims of flooding in Ireland. This humanitarian assistance has helped people at home in Ireland and in Haiti recover from these terrible disasters; the people of Pakistan now also need our help.
Donations are urgently needed to help the people of Pakistan
Please make a donation online or call 1850 50 70 70
Send cheque or postal order made payable to Irish Red Cross Pakistan Flood Appeal,to Irish Red Cross, 16 Merrion Square, Dublin 2