November 3, 2005

NEW YORK / ISLAMABAD – The Church World Service tent village in earthquake-stricken Pakistan now has a functioning mosque; its own dependable supply of clean drinking water; latrines; and an out-patient medical facility. New relief parcels, including health kits, kitchen sets, and utensils are being distributed in the camp, located in the village of Bisyan in North West Frontier Province.

These operations continue even as CWS and other agencies wait and hope for desperately needed funding to continue assisting survivors of the devastating October 8 earthquake.

Church World Service, the humanitarian relief agency supported by 36 denominations and communions, also is preparing to open a separate cooking area for the growing number of families-averaging eight children and adults – housed in the camp.

Scores of patients already have been treated at the CWS camp clinic, which is supported by a larger hospital run by the Diocese of Peshawar. With eight latrines already in service at the tent village, CWS plans to open 42 more over the next few days.

The CWS psychosocial team is using Eid al-Fitr, the celebration that ends the month of Ramadan, to help bring a sense of normality and festivity to still vulnerable families. Gifts and sweets are being distributed as part of the holiday celebrations. The team also has produced a series of radio spots scheduled to air for two weeks, beginning this week. The informative spots are aimed at reassuring people who may be feeling vulnerable as a result of the disaster about their own inner resilience and their ability to cope.

So far, CWS has distributed shelter kits to serve 27,167 individuals. The Pakistan Humanitarian Forum reports that many people have asked for tin sheets so that they can construct family shelters based on their individual needs. Some people still are reluctant to come down from the hills to tent villages for fear of having their livestock or the remains of their homes looted in their absence.

More than 20,685 individuals in the areas of Battagram, Shangla and Balakot have been fed with CWS-provided food packages. Another 100 tents were airdropped into a village in Balakot on October 30, but the combined total of tents expected to be delivered by the end of November still may fall some 100,00 to 200,00 tents short of the number needed. CWS staffers also are concerned that government helicopters might be grounded because of lack of funds.

Church World Service