AWARAN: The victims of a new earthquake to hit southwest Pakistan, days after a massive tremor, were buried yesterday as officials distributed fresh relief to survivors.
The 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck on Saturday and killed at least 22 people in a region devastated by a 7.7-magnitude quake which killed more than 350 and rendered more than 100,000 homeless on Tuesday.
“All the 22 victims were buried in Nokjah village of Awaran district, which had been badly hit by the quake yesterday,” senior local government official Shafqat Anwar said.
He said 14 truckloads of relief including tents, blankets, food packets, water, rice and lentils had reached the Mashkey area of Awaran and officials distributed goods to survivors in Gajjar, Khaliqabad and Nokjah.
Anwar said 16 more trucks with relief goods had left Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan province, and would reach Mashkey today. Infrastructure in the rugged and arid province is minimal and the army and paramilitary Frontier Corps have been heavily involved in relief efforts, along with NGOs.
Awaran district’s population is scattered over more than 21,000sqkm, with few medical facilities or roads.
Relief efforts have at times been thwarted by insurgent attacks on rescue convoys, and officials admit teams have been unable to reach survivors in the worst-hit areas. The area is a stronghold of Baluch separatist rebels waging a decade-long insurgency against Islamabad. Agencies
