Entire villages were flattened, bodies were trapped under collapsed houses and locals waited for help without even shovels to dig people out.<\/p>\n
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Afghan men search for victims after an earthquake in Zenda Jan district in Herat province, of western Afghanistan.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>AP<\/cite><\/p>\n Living and dead, victims were trapped under rubble, their faces grey with dust. A government spokesman said on Sunday that hundreds were still trapped, more than 1000 hurt and more than 1300 homes destroyed.<\/p>\n A spokesman for the State Ministry for Disaster Management said on Monday (AEDT) that 2445 people had died.<\/p>\n \u201cMost people were shocked … some couldn\u2019t even talk. But there were others who couldn\u2019t stop crying and shouting,\u201d photographer Omid Haqjoo, who visited four villages Sunday, told The Associated Press by phone from Afghanistan\u2019s fourth largest city, Herat.<\/p>\n Saturday\u2019s magnitude 6.3 earthquake hit a densely populated area near Herat. It was followed by strong aftershocks.<\/p>\n A Taliban government spokesman on Sunday provided the toll that, if confirmed, would make it one of the deadliest earthquakes to strike the country in two decades.<\/p>\n An earthquake that hit eastern Afghanistan in June 2022, striking a rugged, mountainous region, wiped out stone and mud-brick homes and killed at least 1000 people.<\/p>\n A dog sits near damaged houses after an earthquake in Zenda Jan district in Herat province, of western Afghanistan.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>AP<\/cite><\/p>\n People in Herat freed a baby girl from a collapsed building after she was buried up to her neck in debris. A hand cradled the baby\u2019s torso as rescuers eased the child out of the ground. Rescuers said it was the baby\u2019s mother. It was not clear if the mother survived. The video was shared online and verified by The Associated Press.<\/p>\n The US Geological Survey said the quake\u2019s epicentre was about 40 kilometres north-west of Herat. It was followed by three very strong aftershocks, measuring magnitude 6.3, 5.9 and 5.5, as well as lesser shocks.<\/p>\n With much of the world wary of dealing directly with the Taliban government and focused on the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, Afghanistan hasn\u2019t received an immediate global response. Almost 36 hours after the first earthquake hit Herat province, there have been no planes of aid flying in, no specialists.<\/p>\n Afghans pray for relatives killed in an earthquake to a burial site after an earthquake in Zenda Jan.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>AP<\/cite><\/p>\n Aid agencies and non-governmental groups have appealed for the international community to come forward but only a handful of countries have publicly offered support, neighbouring China and Pakistan among them.<\/p>\n The International Rescue Committee warned that the lack of rescue equipment could push up the death toll in western Afghanistan because trapped survivors cannot be freed.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s not much disaster management capacity and what there is can\u2019t cover people on the ground,\u201d said Salma Ben Aissa, the committee\u2019s country director for Afghanistan. \u201cThe numbers [of dead] are increasing hour by hour.\u201d<\/p>\n People injured in the quake on Saturday can\u2019t get the treatment they need because of poor medical infrastructure so they are losing their lives. A lack of food, shelter and clean water are increasing the health risks among communities.<\/p>\n Ben Aissa\u2019s colleague, Jawed Niamati, said Herat city is empty. People are sleeping in the open air, on roadsides and in parks, because they fear more quakes. Temperatures drop to 10 degrees Celsius at night, he said.<\/p>\n The world rushed in aid after an earthquake rocked Syria and Turkey this year, killing tens of thousands of people.<\/p>\n Abdul Wahid Rayan, a spokesman at the Ministry of Information and Culture, said hundreds of civilians were buried under the debris in Herat, and he called for urgent help.<\/p>\n At least a dozen teams have been scrambled to help with rescue efforts, including from the military and non-profit organisations like the Red Crescent.<\/p>\n The United Nations migration agency deployed four ambulances with doctors and psychosocial support counsellors to the regional hospital. At least three mobile health teams were on their way to the Zenda Jan district, which is one of the worst-hit areas.<\/p>\n Doctors Without Borders set up five medical tents at Herat Regional Hospital to accommodate up to 80 patients. Authorities have treated more than 300 patients, according to the agency. UNICEF dispatched thousands of supplies, including winter clothes, blankets and tarpaulins as temperatures dropped.<\/p>\n Irfanullah Sharafzai, a spokesman for the Afghan Red Crescent Society, said seven teams were busy with rescue efforts while others were arriving from eight nearby provinces. They set up a temporary camp for the displaced, Sharafzai said.<\/p>\n Some aid groups, like the World Food Program, were already on the scene with essential items.<\/p>\n Afghan men search for victims after the earthquakes in Zenda Jan on Saturday. People are still buried in the rubble.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>AP<\/cite><\/p>\n Later Sunday, people from surrounding villages brought equipment to support rescue efforts.<\/p>\n The first quake was the strongest, causing the most damage and casualties, photographer Haqjoo said, quoting survivors.<\/p>\n Save the Children said the scale of the damage was horrific. \u201cThe numbers affected by this tragedy are truly disturbing \u2013 and those numbers will rise as people are still trapped in the rubble of their homes in Herat,\u201d said the aid group\u2019s country director for Afghanistan, Arshad Malik. \u201cThis is a crisis on top of a crisis. Even before this disaster, children were suffering from a devastating lack of food.\u201d<\/p>\n He called for an \u201curgent injection\u201d of money from the international community.<\/p>\n Neighbouring Pakistan said it was in contact with Afghan authorities to get an assessment of the urgent needs.<\/p>\n China\u2019s ambassador to Afghanistan, Zhao Xing, said his government and the country\u2019s charitable institutions were ready to provide all kinds of help. \u201cWe are in contact with Afghan government aid agencies to provide aid to the needy,\u201d he said on X, formerly known as Twitter.<\/p>\n Afghan cricket star Rashid Khan is donating all his Cricket World Cup fees to help Herat\u2019s earthquake survivors. \u201cSoon, we will be launching a fundraising campaign to call upon those who can support the people in need,\u201d he told his 1.9 million followers on X.<\/p>\n Japan\u2019s ambassador to Afghanistan, Takashi Okada, expressed his condolences on the social media platform X, saying he was \u201cdeeply grieved and saddened to learn the news of earthquake in Herat province.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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