Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Lahore (Agenzia Fides) – With severe floods affecting the life of the people in the Pakistan provinces of Punjab, Sindh and Jammu and Kashmir, Caritas Pakistan has mobilised its volunteers to respond to the emergency. Information sent to Fides by Caritas Pakistan speaks of 200 casualties, while the army and civil protection groups strive to rescue thousands more people in danger.
In Punjab at least 700 villages have been flooded and crops over thousands of hectares of land completely destroyed . Districts such as Hafizabad, Sialkot and Gujranwala are cut off from the rest of the country. The same is reported regarding ten seriously affected districts in Jammu and Kashmir.
Caritas launches a humanitarian appeal: “Thousands of families are waiting for food, temporary shelters, medical assistance, clean water, while 26 cases of Dengue fever have been reported . There were no flood warnings from the authorities or any sort of prevention or preparation to meet the crisis”.
Given the critical situation, Caritas Pakistan has already sent a team of volunteers to the affected area to assess conditions and needs. Caritas has received numerous requests for aid from the local parishes and communities. The affected areas are densely populated and the communities living in the flood areas are mainly Christian.
Heavy monsoon rains caused rivers, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej and Jhelum, to burst their banks during the first week of September. According to the authorities the floods are affecting more than 30,000 people. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 10/09/2014)
