This morning a new earthquake shook the province of Herat, in western Afghanistan, an area that already suffered several earthquakes last Saturday, causing at least 2,400 deaths and more than 2,000 injuries, according to the Taliban government. The earthquake reached a magnitude of 6.3 and occurred at 05:10 local time (02:40 Spanish peninsular time). Since then, several aftershocks have occurred throughout this early morning.
The emergency services, which were already working on the ground due to Saturday’s destruction, have been redeployed to begin rescue efforts. “Mobile and responsible medical teams have been working together and transferred several injured people to the hospital,” the Herat governor’s office said in a statement.
Sensing the tremors, residents of the city of Herat quickly left their homes to stay in the streets, remembering Saturday’s earthquake that had trapped many women and children inside their homes. In the villages, much of the population was sleeping outdoors or in tents since the weekend.
At least 50 injuries have been reported and provincial authorities said hundreds of homes had been destroyed. Many Afghans begin the fall without a roof over their heads.
Afghanistan is an earthquake-prone country, located in a tectonically active region on a series of fault lines. But this weekend’s earthquakes have been one of the worst catastrophes in recent decades in the country. About twenty villages have been practically destroyed.
The situation of poverty that Afghanistan has been experiencing for years is making rescue efforts even more difficult. The infrastructure in ruins after decades of war and the lack of foreign aid, which supported the Afghan health system, and which was withdrawn after the Taliban took power, is suffering more than ever.
A part of the international community has already mobilized to alleviate the losses. The United Nations has announced support worth $5 million and the European Union said it will disburse €2.5 million to fund humanitarian aid. Pakistan, Iran, Turkey and China have also pledged to send food, blankets, medicine, tents and funds.
However, Afghans are still waiting for all that aid to arrive. “Believe me, no one has helped us with even a glass of water since Saturday,” said Haris Ahmad, who has been sleeping rough with the rest of his family in a park in Herat.
Survivors face great difficulties in accessing clean water and food. “People are slowly running out of cash, I don’t know how long we will have to continue buying basic products,” Ahmad said.
The lack of shelter also complicates the conditions of those affected by the earthquakes, Ahmad explained, with the prices of tents skyrocketing and little shade available in the city’s parks and sidewalks.
This earthquake means one more blow for a population that has been immersed in a deep humanitarian crisis for years.
