Disease warning in quake zone

Doctors struggling with a constant flow of patients in a quake-ravaged Pakistani city warned today that the number of sick could swell dramatically in the coming weeks, as harsh weather creates conditions for pneumonia and other illnesses to spread.

A total of 234 patients with winter-related ailments were admitted within the past 24 hours, said Bashir Rahman, medical superintendent at the Abbas Institute of Medical Science hospital in Muzaffarabad, one of the cities hit hardest by the October 8 earthquake.