Afghanistan earthquake: Rescue efforts hampered in mountain villages
Rescuers in Afghanistan are racing to reach isolated mountain villages devastated by a magnitude-6 earthquake that struck just after midnight on Monday, killing more than 800 people and injuring nearly 2,800.
Authorities said the worst-hit areas were in Kunar province, along the eastern border with Pakistan. Rescue teams worked through four villages on Monday, but attention has now shifted to more remote communities where mudbrick homes were flattened and access remains perilous, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
“We cannot accurately predict how many bodies might still be trapped under the rubble,” said Ehsanullah Ehsan, Kunar’s provincial disaster management chief. “Our effort is to complete these operations as soon as possible and to begin distributing aid to the affected families.”
Mountainous terrain and poor weather have made relief operations difficult. Narrow mountain roads blocked by landslides and debris are slowing vehicle access, forcing machinery to be brought in to clear the way. On Tuesday, ambulances queued along damaged roads while helicopters delivered emergency supplies and evacuated the injured, according to a Reuters witness.
The disaster has further strained Afghanistan’s already fragile system. Some of the injured have been taken to hospitals in Kabul and Nangarhar province, while Taliban soldiers have been deployed to assist with aid distribution and maintain security. Ehsan said national and international organisations were also present and had begun organising relief.
The World Health Organization warned that the challenges are severe. Damaged roads, ongoing aftershocks and the remoteness of many villages are impeding the delivery of aid, while Afghanistan’s health system—already fragile before the quake—is now overwhelmed and reliant on external support. The WHO estimated that more than 12,000 people have been affected.
Rescue teams are also working quickly to dispose of livestock carcasses to prevent contamination of water sources, a U.N. official said.
Afghanistan is prone to devastating earthquakes due to its location in the Hindu Kush mountains, where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet. A 6.1-magnitude quake in 2022 killed 1,000 people in the eastern region, marking the Taliban administration’s first major natural disaster.
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