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Summary: A 7.7 magnitude earthquake hit the south western region of Pakistan on 24 September 2013. The earthquake had a focal depth of 10 kilometres (kms), and was followed by a series of aftershocks over the following days. The epicentre was 66 kilometres north-east of Awaran district capital, with tremors felt in the neighbouring Sindh Province. The Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) declared six districts of Balochistan as being earthquake-affected, with Awaran being the worst hit. Within three days, the Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS) deployed assessment teams to the affected areas.
Based on the initial assessment reports, on September 30 2013, the PRCS, with the support of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), requested a disbursement of CHF 154,425 from the Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) to cover activities outlined in the DREF Plan of Action. These activities included procurement and distribution of 1,000 food parcels, distribution of non-food items to 1,000 families, transportation of food and non-food items, as well as provision of emergency health services through mobile health units.
Access to the earthquake affected area proved challenging on two fronts – firstly, the district of Arawan is  The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC) Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) is a source of un-earmarked money created by the Federation in 1985 to ensure that immediate financial support is available for Red Cross and Red Crescent emergency response. The DREF is a vital part of the International Federation’s disaster response system and increases the ability of National Societies to respond to disasters. PRCS health team provided services to the earthquake affected population. Photo: PRCS. remote, and secondly, a long-standing insurgency involving separatist groups in the area heightened security concerns for the teams working there. IFRC personnel are not allowed to visit Balochistan because of the security situation. Field activities were therefore coordinated by the local PRCS provincial office with remote support from the IFRC delegation in Islamabad. According to the DREF Plan of Action, the timeframe for completion of activities was three months. However, the security situation led to the PRCS decision to end the operation prematurely on 8 November 2013.
The Awaran earthquake attracted the attention of private sector firms in country, many of which approached the PRCS with offers of financial support. In an effort to cultivate relationships with these local firms, with a view to securing longer-term support for the PRCS developmental programming, funding was accepted and used to support the emergency response of the DREF Plan of Action, particularly for the health component. Hence, the DREF was not fully utilized as some response operation was covered by these donors. Of the total DREF amount, CHF 64,524 was utilized. The balance of CHF 89,901 will be returned to the DREF pot.
The number of deaths resulting from the earthquake amounted to 386, with 816 injuries and 30,000 affected families1. Overall, PRCS reached 72,890 earthquake affected persons with food, non-food and emergency health services. With the financial support from the DREF, the PRCS provided food and non- food items to 1,000 families. All activities were conducted in close coordination with the District Commissioner Awaran and the PRCS Provincial Branch.
The major donors to the DREF are the Canadian Red Cross Society and Canadian Government as well as the Spanish Red Cross and the Spanish Government. IFRC, on behalf of PRCS, would like to thank all donors for supporting the replenishment of this DREF.