Relief agencies may begin air drops of food to victims of a severe earthquake in northern Afghanistan which claimed the lives of around 800 people, a UN official said today.
Afghan officials had earlier predicted the death toll from Monday night's quake could reach up to 3,000, but UN officials said yesterday they believed the toll was around 800, although they cautioned the figure could change.
Farhana Faruqi, the United Nations' regional coordinator for northern Afghanistan, said air drops were being considered as a last resort as aid teams struggled to reach devastated outlying villages.
"Food is the main priority now," Ms Faruqi told AFP. "We have covered 14,000 families with blankets and tents, now food is the most urgent need.
"The second priority is water. We are moving bladders (huge water containers) today to 14 villages that have been prioritised."
Four days after the quake measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale destroyed hundreds of homes and buildings in this remote region, relief workers are still struggling to food and aid over the rugged terrain.
Some families have been forced to take their donkeys to aid distribution centres because trucks have been unable to pass along narrow dirt tracks, Ms Faruqi said.
She said helicopters were on standby to launch aid drops to unreachable villages, but only as a last resort.
AFP