Relief Efforts Stepped Up in Pakistan

As the rescue and relief mission for the victims of Pakistan's devastating floods continues into its second month, a number of different countries and agencies are ramping up their efforts to provide supplies and equipment to the country, 1/5 of which still remains underwater. Some 20 million people are still in need of assistance and charities are gearing up for the long run. It will take years to rebuild after the devastation and the relief efforts are still in the emergency relief phase, as many of the victims have to date not received any aid at all.

The humanitarian crisis grows daily, with reports of diseases caused by poor sanitation and lack of clean drinking water beginning to take their toll. The urgency of the aid efforts are being stressed by organizations in charge of fund-raising who are seeking to convey the size and seriousness of the still-unfolding catastrophe.

The United States military has announced that since August 5th, they have delivered over 5 million pounds of supplies to victims in the flooded areas and that they have been able to rescue over 13,000 people from the flood waters. The U.S. military currently has 26 helicopters delivering supplies and performing rescue missions and has C-17 and C-130 cargo planes performing airlifts in the stricken region. The US government pledged this week to donate another $261 million in relief funds to the ongoing effort. Richard Holbrooke, the US Special Envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan, will visit several of the affected districts this week, to make a first-hand assessment of the situation to determine what the future focus of aid efforts will be.

Other governments are stepping up relief and aid as well, with Iran having flown in 5 planeloads of supplies this week and Canada announcing that they will extend the deadline of their matching-fund program to October 3rd. In Pakistan, telecommunication workers struggle to begin repairing the infrastructure of the badly damaged communications network, as worried Pakistanis living out side the country try to call Pakistan to find news about friends and family members. Many of those making international calls to Pakistan have been unable to get through to the affected districts.