Survivors of last week’s deadly earthquakes in Herat, in Afghanistan, have voiced concern over the shortage of medicine in the province, saying children are falling ill but there are not enough medical supplies to treat them.
Hundreds of homes were completely destroyed in the October 7 earthquake that measured 6.3 magnitude and heavy aftershocks continue to shake the region.
Worst hit was Zindajan district, where at least 20 villages were completely destroyed.
Thousands of villagers in the western province are sheltering in tents provided to them by aid agencies – after losing mostly all their belongings when their houses collapsed.
Amu spoke to some of the survivors who are struggling to come to terms with the devastation and their predicament.
Mohammad Omar, a resident of Naib Rafi, a village in Zindajan, is living in the rubble of what was his home. He is struggling with a head injury.
“I was trapped under rubble for hours. My head sustained injuries. We face a shortage of medicine and medical services,” he said.
Some residents also said they had problems accessing drinking water, food as well as shelter. A number of them said their children were also falling ill.
This comes after the World Health Organization (WHO), said that 21 female doctors, nurses and midwives have arrived in Herat to support maternal and child health care services being carried out by mobile health and nutrition teams already in the worst-hit areas. WHO said the medical teams will be in Herat for at least one week.
WHO said in a report said that nearly 10,000 people are being assisted with health services and 5,000 others with different needs.
“At the 650-bed Herat Regional Hospital, which received those injured by the earthquake, a total of 698 patients had been admitted since 7 October 2023,” the report read. “Currently, 17 patients are hospitalized in the regional hospital, and 53 were discharged today. Other patients were discharged in the previous days.”
Zindajan residents earlier called for the aid to be distributed fairly as many countries have stepped in to provide support to the quake victims.
