Ref. OCHA/GVA - 2001/0152
OCHA Situation Report No. 3
Pakistan - Floods
1 August 2001

Situation and Damage

1. Devastating floods, caused by torrential rains, hit some parts of Pakistan on 23 July 2001. One week after the disaster, the focus is being shifted from rescue operations towards relief activities. The rescue operations are almost complete and there is no hope of finding any survivors now. The most immediate concern of the various agencies involved is to ensure the timely provision of relief supplies to the affected people and to monitor the health situation in view of contaminated water supplies.

2. According to the Emergency Relief Cell of the Federal Government of Pakistan (GoP), the number of people dead as a result of these floods stands at 210. Most affected are Rawalpindi where 64 died and the village of Dadar in Mansehra district, where 105 deaths have been confirmed. The majority of the affected population in Rawalpindi is those living in the slums. The figure of the people affected by the floods is roughly estimated at 400,000, according to the Emergency Relief Cell. The Punjab Revenue Department has reported that losses caused by the rains in Rawalpindi are in the range of PKR 10 to 15 billion (USD 164-246 million).

3. WHO and the National Institute of Health have warned of the risk of a cholera outbreak in the affected areas of Rawalpindi. According to WHO and UNICEF, the risk of such an outbreak is greatest on the sixth day after the onset of a flood situation like this. The fear of a cholera outbreak has prompted immediate action. WHO and UNICEF, in collaboration with the GoP, started distributing water purification tablets immediately after the disaster. This response was accompanied by public awareness campaigns on their proper use of water purification tablets and on health risks of drinking untreated water. As a result, an outbreak of cholera and other water-borne diseases in the affected areas seems to have been averted. UNICEF and WHO are still closely monitoring the quality of drinking water in Rawalpindi.

National and International Response

4. The Government of Pakistan has officially indicated that UN assistance is "welcome and very much appreciated". Rawalpindi has been declared a calamity-hit area by the Government of Punjab. Five relief camps have been established and food packets are being provided to the affected people. Both the Government of Pakistan and the Government of Punjab have provided financial support to the affected population.

5. The Government of Japan has announced a contribution of US$ 300,000 worth of relief goods to the affected areas of Rawalpindi.

6. The European Commission in Pakistan has provided food and other essential items to the affected population in Rawalpindi.

7. OCHA has dispatched its Regional Disaster Response Advisor to Pakistan to review, together with the UNDMT, the flood as well as the drought situation.

8. UNICEF has sent a staff member to Mansehra to assess the damage done by the floods in Dadar village. This is in complimentarity to the assessment being carried out by the local relief authorities.

9. WHO is providing US$ 5,000 worth of medicine needed in the affected areas of Rawalpindi. This is in addition to the 50,000 water purification tablets already provided.

10. World Food Programme has dispatched a truckload of food items for the affected village of Dadar in Mansehra, NWFP. The food items sent to Mansehra comprise of 7.5 tons of wheat flour and 4.5 tons of edible oil. WFP has also handed over 4 tons of edible oil to the relief authorities for distribution among the flood-affected people in Rawalpindi.

11. UNHCR has donated 100 tents to be distributed among the affected people in Buner district.

12. IFRC and the NWFP branch of the Pakistan Red Crescent have allocated an emergency grant of CHF 55,500 (USD 31,180) for food and other relief items, in addition to the already provided tents, blankets, cloth, and towels to Mansehra district.

13. A number of NGOs are also involved in relief efforts focusing on the affected Katchi Abadis (slums) of Rawalpindi and Islamabad. They include Islamic Relief and All Pakistan Alliance for Katchi Abadis, OXFAM-GB, SDPI, ACD, AMAL, and Catholic Relief Services. One group of NGOs has appealed for the sum of PKR 2,016,000 (US$ 33,000) for the provision of basic relief items to almost 2,200 affected families living in these slums. ACT (Action by Churches Together) has launched an appeal, seeking USD 133,825 for the purchase of food packets, shelter kits, reconstruction kits, and kitchen utensils for 1,000 families in Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Mansehra district.

14. The contributions table for this disaster contains data reported to OCHA Geneva by donors on the date of issue of this report. Any future updates on contributions to this disaster may be found by clicking on Financial Tracking at the top of the page for this disaster on the OCHA Internet Website (http://www.reliefweb.int). Donors are requested to verify this table and inform OCHA Geneva of corrections/additions/values. Donors are encouraged to notify OCHA Geneva of their contributions to this disaster using the OCHA Standardized Contributions Recording Format, available electronically in the above mentioned Financial Tracking Website.

15. OCHA is in close contact with the UN RC's Office as well as with the Government of Pakistan, and will revert with further information, as it becomes available.

16. This situation report, together with further information on ongoing emergencies, is also available on the OCHA Internet Website at http://www.reliefweb.int

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