Snow piles misery on Pakistan quake zone

THE heaviest rain and snow of the winter so far lashed Pakistan's earthquake-hit areas yesterday, grounding helicopters flying relief supplies and deepening the misery of survivors who huddled around camp fires.

Aid workers warned that cold weather in the Himalayan foothills, where temperatures have already fallen below freezing, may claim more lives after the magnitude 7.6 quake on October 8 left about 87,000 people dead and 3.5 million homeless.

Helicopters from the UN, foreign militaries and Pakistan's army, which have been delivering winter tents, clothes, food and other provisions to survivors, suspended flights due to poor visibility yesterday.

The weather was likely to clear up enough for helicopter flights to resume by today, officials said.

The UN estimates 2.5 million people are living in tents below 5,000ft, while 350,000-400,000 others are in higher areas - where it is feared snow and rain will make it harder for helicopters and trucks to reach them.

Throughout yesterday, cold rain pounded the quake zone and about 12 inches of snow fell above the 6,000ft level, said Qamar-uz Zaman Chaudhry, head of Pakistan's Meteorological Department.

Last night, heavy snow also blanketed Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-controlled Kashmir and the logistical centre of the humanitarian operation. Residents reported that roads leading to the higher mountains were blocked by vehicles stuck in snow.

Mr Chaudhry said more snow and rain were likely over the next two days.

As the cold spell chilled the sprawling tent cities that have sprung up in Pakistan's north-west and in Kashmir, survivors struggled to keep warm around camp fires and candles, which exposed them to yet another danger.

Police reported that three young sisters were killed when a fire swept through a tent in Gul Deri, a village in north-western Pakistan.

The fire was caused by a candle lit inside the tent that the family had pitched next to their home, which was destroyed by the quake, police said.

Last month, seven people, including four children, died in a similar accident, and the UN said it has started teaching people how to make safe fires.

In Muzaffarabad and nearby areas, survivors said the rain and snow were making their lives miserable.

Sajjad Ali Shah, a 38-year-old resident of a damp, riverside camp in Muzaffarabad, said people had dug drains around their tents to stop rain from entering, but the ground had become wet.

Ithar Jan Bibi, a woman in another village near Muzaffarabad, said she was running out of food that aid workers distribute every 15 days and she was not sure whether the next handout would arrive on time because of the bad weather.

"I cannot make fire in the tent and I do not have dry wood to burn," she said. "It is impossible to fetch water in the snow."

The government, in collaboration with UN aid agencies, is setting up community kitchens for survivors so that they do not cook food in tents.

Survivors said they dread the prospect of a prolonged rainy and snowy spell.

"If rain and snowfall persist that would bring another tragedy in the area," said Sheikh Muhammad Shafique, 45, who lives in a tent on the outskirts of the city.

Relief officials and the UN have said they had made arrangements to protect thousands of survivors by reinforcing their tents or helping them to build one-room shelters from the rubble of their homes.