Earthquake

Salam alaikum.

I didn't think I'd be writing on my blog for a couple of days. What happened to our country on Saturday cannot possibly be described in any manner without doing injustice to the scale of the tragedy. However, I cannot ignore this matter, not one bit.

When my mother told me Saturday morning that an earthquake had struck Islamabad, frankly, I wasn't very alarmed - earthquakes aren't uncommon in the mountainous north of Pakistan. I had to go somewhere that morning and in the car radio, the stories started to unfold. The scale of the disaster started becoming apparent. Finally, when I got home and actually sat before the TV to view the live coverage, I couldn't move or do anything else.

Hamid Mir, a reporter with Geo TV, was reporting live from the rooftop of a building. Technicians and other staff at the network had departed, leaving him and the cameraman alone to do the job. Nobody could blame them - they had to look after their families. The screen shook often as, one after one, aftershocks struck the region.

A 7.6 - magnitude earthquake struck South-Asia, with its epicenter jsut 95 miles north of Islamabad. It has been said that since the epicenter wasn't very deep in the Earth's crust (just 10 km), it caused widespread damage. Tremors were felt as far as a 1500 km away in each direction. The Karachites, Alhamdolillah, didn't register anything.

I don't know what to say about the disaster itself. We've been watching the news channels for three days now. The area that was struck hardest was the area of Azad Kashmir (Free Kashmir - Pakistan controlled), Indian-administered Kashmir and the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) of Pakistan which borders Afghanistan. Whole villages have been reduced to piles of rubble. Where there were moutain resorts, crystal-clear waters and scenic moutain sides, only dust and destruction remain.

It was 8:58 am. Most kids were in school as Saturday is a schol day in Government schools. Most men had gone out to their jobs. Women were either asleep or busy in their chores. When the quake struck, the most devastation was caused in small villages and towns scattered on the mountainsides and nestled in narrow valleys. Roofs of schoolhouses came tumbling down upon the innocent children, whole families were buried in their own houses. What you saw first on TV was a collapsed apartment building in a posh locality of Islamabad which tumbled down five seconds after the first tremors.

The Northern areas are often inaccessible even in normal conditions. The roads carved out of the mountains are narrow and crumbling. Often, landslides block major roads. Now, with whole mountains cracked, bridges crumbling - if not destroyed - and mud, wood and concrete houses reduced to heaps of dust, getting to the disaster-struck areas is the biggest challenge. Their needs, their requirements are all staring us in the face, yes, but how do you get to those places without adequate helicopters and without proper roads?

They show images of villages and towns - usually Balakot and Muzaffarabad - where people wait helplessly for aid and relief. Their loved ones are underneath the rubble - even if they are alive, rescue teams might not make it in time. There are so many villages and towns just like theirs that need such help. No aid will be enough.

In destroyed schools, you can still see the dead bodies of children. Such heartwrenching scenes and nobody can do anything. The scale of the disaster is overwhelming. Locals have been trying to clear the debris with their bare hands, shovels - anything - to get to their loved ones. Their homes, their families, their belongings are all gone. Night falls and thudnerstorms add to the plunging temperatures. Whole villages crouch by the fires in the open, huddling close for warmth.

So much needs to be done. In such times, appeal to the International community for help cannot be considered as degrading to our national pride. But alongside, the Paksitani citizens have also come forward to help in droves. Relief camps at many places in the country have registered huge monetary and material donations. The NGOs are doing their work brilliantly! However, the lack of co-ordination often seen should not be heavily criticised. I have to admit that the Government agencies are all engaged in the relief efforts and most top ministers have been working around the clock.

A channel that was recently launched - TV One - has been doing a commendable job all day today. Their hands-on approach to the disaster was very effective. They've been asking viewers to collect volunteers, organize medical teams and contact the network for transport to the disaster areas. Alongside, they've been issuing lists of what is required in material donations. Volunteers - students, doctors, teachers - are helping out at the relief camps in the assortment of the donations. In this regard, the PAF (Pakistan Air Force) is doing a great job in transporting the aid to where it is needed in their C-13Os and cargo planes. The PAF Museum in Karachi has become the scene of a massive relief operation where an army of volunteers is helping out, even now, in whatever way they can.

I felt terribly helpless today as I combed my belongings for anything I could donate in terms of money and clothes. My wardrobe is full of clothes I just got stitched and they know seem to have become a noose around my neck. My country-people need so much and we here are relaxing in every kind of comfort. I really wish I was a doctor now - they need doctors there. They need people to treat their fractures, cuts and amputations.

If you wish to donate, please do! Helicopters an cargo planes are out of the question for the average human being but please donate in terms of money if you live abroad. There are several organizations accepting donations - the Red Cross, Oxfam, Islamic Relief.
We, too, are helping in whatever way we can - medicines, quilts, clothes, shoes, dry food, etc.

It is iftaar time and I must go. My deepest prayers are with my country-people in trouble. May Allah protect us from further disasters and guide the grief-stricken people to be able to lead normal lives again. And may Allah enable us to learn lessons from this reminder of nature. Ameen.

Salam alaikum.