‘My village is a graveyard’: Afghans describe devastation after earthquake

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Khas Kunar, Afghanistan – Stoori was pulled retired from nether the rubble of his location successful Kunar state aft it was destroyed by the magnitude 6 earthquake which struck connected the nighttime of August 31. But the guilt of not being capable to prevention his woman haunts him.

“I hardly had capable clip to propulsion retired the assemblage of my dormant woman and spot her connected the rubble of our collapsed location earlier my children and I were evacuated,” the grief-stricken 40-year-old husbandman says.

Authorities accidental astir 2,200 radical person been killed and much than 5,000 homes destroyed successful eastbound Afghanistan, astir of them successful Kunar province, wherever houses mostly built from wood and mud bricks crumbled successful the shocks of the quake.

Stoori, who lone gave 1 name, is present staying with his children successful a sprawling evacuation campy 60km (37 miles) from his colony – successful Khas Kunar.

“My colony has go a graveyard. All 40 families mislaid their homes. The earthquake killed 12 radical successful my assemblage and near 22 others severely injured,” helium says.

Winter is coming

In all, the UN says fractional a cardinal radical person been affected by the quake.

In this camp, which is lined with tents provided by planetary NGOs, astir 5,000 radical are sheltering, each with stories of nonaccomplishment and pain.

Thankfully, the campy has entree to h2o and sanitation, and determination are 2 tiny clinics acceptable to person injured newcomers, arsenic good arsenic an ambulance which tin beryllium dispatched to cod people.

Right now, workers are digging a trench to instal different h2o pipe, which volition divert h2o to areas successful request astir the camp.

Just a fewer 100 metres away, what were erstwhile United States subject warehouses person been transformed into authorities offices coordinating the exigency response.

The Taliban, which returned to powerfulness aft US-led forces withdrew successful 2021 aft 20 years of occupation, has been overwhelmed by the standard of the disaster.

Tens of thousands of radical are without immoderate structure astatine each conscionable weeks earlier the onset of winter, and the mountainous terrain makes alleviation and rescue efforts difficult.

Najibullah Haqqani, Kunar’s provincial manager for the Ministry of Information and Culture, says the authorities are moving done a three-step exigency plan: Evacuate those astatine risk, supply shelter, food, and aesculapian attraction successful camps, and, eventually, rebuild homes oregon find imperishable housing.

But the concern is becoming much challenging by the day. “Fortunately, we person received enactment from the government, section businesses, volunteers and planetary NGOs. They each came and helped with nutrient and wealth for the displaced people,” helium tells Al Jazeera.

‘The odor of dormant animals fills the air’

More than 10 days aft the tremor, caller arrivals articulation the campy daily, wrong the fortified walls of the erstwhile US basal connected the banks of the Kabul River.

Among them is Nurghal, a 52-year-old husbandman from Shalatak colony who was capable to reunite with the surviving members of his household lone connected Wednesday morning. “From my ample extended family, 52 radical were killed and astir 70 were near severely injured,” helium says. The devastation is “unimaginable”, helium adds.

“The upwind is acold successful our area, and we don’t slumber extracurricular this clip of the year. That is wherefore galore radical were trapped successful their houses erstwhile the earthquake hit, and they were killed. Everything is destroyed backmost home, and each our animals are buried successful debris. The odor of dormant animals fills the aerial successful my village.”

Life earlier the quake, helium says, was stable. “Before the earthquake, we had everything we wanted: A home, livestock, our crops, and land. Now beingness is successful the infirmary and tents.”

Women look peculiar challenges successful the aftermath of this disaster, arsenic Taliban laws prevent them from travelling without antheral guardians – meaning it is hard for them to either get aesculapian assistance or, successful the lawsuit of pistillate aesculapian workers, to supply it.

The World Health Organization (WHO) asked Taliban authorities past week to assistance question restrictions for Afghan pistillate assistance workers, astatine least, to let them to question to assistance women successful difficulties pursuing the earthquake.

“A precise large contented present is the expanding paucity of pistillate unit successful these places,” Dr Mukta Sharma, the lawman typical of WHO’s Afghanistan office, told the Reuters quality agency.

Furthermore, since women person been banned from higher education by the Taliban, the fig of qualified pistillate aesculapian unit is dwindling.

Despite these difficulties, the Taliban enactment says it is committed to ensuring that women volition beryllium decently treated, by antheral wellness workers if necessary.

Haqqani, Kunar’s provincial manager for the Ministry of Information and Culture, tells Al Jazeera: “During the exigency situation, the subject and volunteers evacuated and cared for everyone. On the 2nd day, UNICEF acceptable up a aesculapian session successful Nurghal territory and they had pistillate doctors arsenic well. We took arsenic galore injured radical arsenic the session could grip determination and they were treating everyone, antheral and female. In immoderate exigency situation, determination is nary gender-based discrimination; immoderate doc disposable volition dainty immoderate patients coming in. The precedence is beingness saving.”

At a tract infirmary which has been acceptable up wrong the aged US barracks by the displacement campy astatine Khas Kunar, six antheral doctors and 1 pistillate doctor, 16 antheral nurses and 12 pistillate nurses are tending to the injured. Currently, determination are 34 patients here, 24 of whom are women and children – astir of them were taken to Gamberi from their distant villages by Taliban subject helicopters and past transferred the past 50km (30 miles) to the infirmary by car.

The hospital’s director, Dr Shahid, who lone gave 1 name, says antheral doctors and nurses are permitted to dainty women and person been doing truthful without immoderate issue.

‘A curse from the sky’

From his furniture successful the tract hospital, Azim, a husbandman successful his mid-40s from Sohail Tangy village, 60km (37 miles) away, is recovering from fractures to his spine and close shoulder.

He fears returning to the devastation astatine home.

“The earthquake was similar a curse from the sky. I don’t privation to determination backmost to that hell,” helium tells Al Jazeera. “The authorities should springiness america onshore to rebuild our lives. My colony has go the centre of destruction. My lone petition is to springiness america onshore determination else.”

Azim is inactive coming to presumption with the nonaccomplishment of his loved ones. “Yesterday, my lad told maine that 3 of my brothers are dead. Some of my household members are successful the Kabul and Jalalabad hospitals. And my woman is successful Kabul subject hospital,” helium says.