A new threat to survivors (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

A new threat to survivors

Survivors beg for foodAzim Khan was devastated to lose 20 members of his family in the terrible earthquake in Pakistan earlier this month. We accompanied the Swindon shopkeeper on a heart-rending visit to his home town

SURVIVORS of the quake are being told to prepare for a tough winter.

Not a single house remains intact in Battal, in the North West Frontier province of Pakistan.

Thousands have already fled the town for the warmth and relative safety of Karachi in the south of the country.

Many fear another devastating earthquake is imminent, despite reassurances from geologists.

But some have chosen to remain determined to defy nature once more.

They are living in makeshift shelters only the lucky few have tents.

Last year it snowed for 60 consecutive days, resulting in six foot high drifts.

A repeat would leave thousands dead, warn doctors based in nearby Abbottabad.

Battal's 10-bed hospital opened in 1972 is in ruins.

Doctors Saleem Afzau and Bina Swati helped establish a field hospital in the garrison town on October 12.

Around 20 people are currently being treated there.

But Dr Afzau says their work could all be for nothing once the snow arrives.

"We have been treating people with severe limb trauma from towns including Balakot and Battal," he tells me.

"Once they have been treated we offer them a bed in a tent here we don't turn anyone away.

"But there is no doubt in my mind that the snow will kill many of them they don't stand a chance.

"The temperature will drop to below zero and patients will literally freeze to death."

Dr Afzau is calling on the authorities to organise a mass evacuation to the south.

"That is the only answer," he adds.

Meanwhile, Lieutenant Colonel Muhammad Khalid in charge of the relief effort in Battal and surrounding towns admits defeat.

Damage limitation now appears to be the main mission.

"We desperately need people to come down from the mountain villages, where it is very cold in winter.

"We expect to see a huge increase in cold-related illnesses like pneumonia and chest infections."

Increasingly, the Pakistan army are coming under fire from survivors who blame them for a slow response to the disaster.

But Lieut Col Khalid defended his troops.

"A disaster on this scale would have stretched any army," he says, looking out onto a makeshift helicopter-landing pad.

"We have to understand what is preferable and what is achievable.

"The first phrase of the relief operation was to recover the dead bodies.

"That is now complete and our records show only one person is still unaccounted for.

"The second phrase involves providing adequate shelter for the survivors."

Pakistani pop singer Jawad Ahmed has urged the government to supply affected areas with fibreglass houses.

But Lt Col Khalid dismissed the idea.

"Ideally, we would like everyone to be housed in a wooden structure but that is not going to be possible before winter."

So far, around 70 aid trucks have visited Battal, delivering food, water, medical care and tents.

But Lt Col Khalid says tents are in extremely short supply.

"The need for tents capable of withstanding harsh winter conditions is most pressing.

"Within two weeks we can expect snow and it will get very cold indeed."

Father-of-four Jamil-ur-Rahman, of Battal, lost three nieces in the October 8 disaster.

Nearly three weeks on and his family have still to receive a tent.

Jamil and 16 of his relatives are living under a 12ft by 15ft tarp sheet.

"A cousin sent it the government has abandoned us," says the 35-year-old.

"This disaster has put us back 50 years."