Over 4 Million Homeless in Flood-Hit Pakistan, Worst Could Yet Come

Over 4 million homeless in flood-hit Pakistan - U.N.

UPI, August 19, 2010

The number of people rendered homeless by the devastating floods in Pakistan has risen to over 4 million, the United Nations said on Thursday.

The U.N. had earlier said that 2 million people had lost their homes in the worst floods in Pakistan's history which began nearly three weeks.

"According to rough estimates, over 4 million people in Sindh and Punjab still do not have a roof on their head," U.N. spokesman Maurizio Giuliano told Reuters, referring to southern and central provinces worst hit by the flood. "This situation is of high concern."

(Reporting by Zeeshan Haider; Editing by Michael Georgy and Alex Richardson)

Worst 'could yet come' for Pakistan

ITN, August 19, 2010

Video: Worst 'could yet come' for Pakistan

Speaking on a visit to the country, Mr. Mitchell warned that forecast further heavy rains threatened even more damage to heavily populated areas in the south.

British public donations to the floods appeal hit £19 million on Wednesday, but charities warned that millions were still at risk of cholera and other potentially deadly diseases.

Mr Mitchell and Baroness Warsi, the Minister Without Portfolio, visited Pakistan to see how UK aid was helping victims of the disaster and to assess whether further help was needed.

They spoke of their shock at the scale of the tragedy after touring the village of Pir Sabak in north-west Pakistan, which was destroyed by the raging waters.

Mr Mitchell said: "Nothing could have prepared me for the horrific scenes of destruction and devastation I have seen today. But the worst could still be to come. More heavy rains are expected, and as the River Indus rises, it threatens further damage to heavily populated areas in the south of the country."

He added: "We need to support Pakistan for the long-term as well as giving short-term relief and I want the people of Pakistan to know the UK is standing by them."

About 1,500 people have been killed and millions of others displaced by the floods, which have affected a fifth of Pakistan, according to officials.

UN to meet on Pakistan as fears mount for survivors

AFP, August 19, 2010

Nasir Jaffry

Fears mounted for the survivors of floods in Pakistan as the UN prepared Thursday to drum up more aid and John Kerry became the first senior US policymaker to visit since the crisis which has affected millions.

The United Nations has described Pakistan's worst humanitarian crisis as one of the world's biggest disasters, but while foreign aid is now reaching some of the 20 million flood victims, criticis have slammed the response as too slow.

About six million people are dependent on humanitarian assistance to survive, in desperate need of food, shelter and clean drinking water, with concerns growing over potential outbreaks of cholera, typoid and hepatitis.

The UN General Assembly meets in New York on Thursday in an effort to hasten the delivery of aid after receiving just over half of the 460 million dollars appealed for last week.

The Asian Development Bank is reportedly ready to offer a two-billion-dollar emergency loan to repair the nation's damaged infrastructure and the World Bank has promised to lend 900 million dollars.

Although weather forecasters say the monsoon systems are easing off and water levels receding, the fallout from three weeks of devastating floods that have left nearly 1,500 people dead is likely to last for years.

The floods wiped out entire villages, farmland and infrastructure, and the UN aid coordination body OCHA said that more than 650,000 homeless families were still without basic shelter.

At a camps for the displaced across the country, survivors are battling with crippling heat, miserable sanitation and swarms of mosquitoes.

Many fled their homes with just the clothes on their backs and have been forced to drink contaminated water, causing watery diarrhoea.

OCHA said Thursday that water purification tablets are now being distributed and that improved funding means that almost 2.6 million people -- nearly half of the target six million -- have now been given clean water.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is expected to use the UN meeting to announce extra American aid -- currently 90 million dollars.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who visited the blighted region at the weekend and described the situation as "heart-wrenching", is to outline the humanitarian needs of the flood victims.

"There has been an increase in the pace of pledges, but we still need more funds, tents, food, water and medical supplies," UN spokesman Martin Nesirky said.

A resolution urging the international community to help Pakistan recover in the medium and long-term will also be on the table, amid signs foreign donors are rallying in support of the embattled Muslim nation.

The nuclear-armed country is on the frontline of the US-led fight against Al-Qaeda and is locked in battle with homegrown Taliban who have been blamed over a three-year bombing campaign that has killed more than 3,570 people.

A US government report warns that ecological problems would likely worsen due to climate change, threatening the unity of Pakistan and exacerbating the threat of Islamist extremists.

Kerry, who heads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and co-authored a record 7.5 billion-dollar aid bill for Pakistan, was holding talks with Pakistani leaders and scheduled to visit flood-hit areas on Thursday.

He is scheduled to meet President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, after holding talks with army chief General Ashfaq Kayaniy on Wednesday.

The US government said it could divert part of its 7.5 billion dollar non-military aid programme for Pakistan into short-term relief. The European Union has also doubled its commitment to 70 million euros (90 million dollars).

Hollywood star Angelina Jolie has handed 100,000 dollars to help refugees, according to UN sources, while former Pakistani cricket hero and politician Imran Khan has launched a fund-raising campaign.

Islamabad has confirmed 1,475 deaths, but WHO representative Guido Sabatinelli told AFP he suspected the toll was much higher.

"We're talking about 20 million people affected today and there is no infrastructure and no health centres that can register the deaths," he said.

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