Pakistan has sent urgently needed relief supplies for the people of Afghanistan where a powerful earthquake killed more than 1,000 people. Image Credit: Pakistan Government
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Islamabad: Pakistan has sent urgently needed relief supplies for the people of Afghanistan where a powerful earthquake killed more than 1,000 people and injured another 1,600.

On Thursday, the Pakistan government sent eight truckloads of supplies for the earthquake victims. The core relief items included tents, tarpaulins, blankets and emergency medicines.

The consignment was arranged by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved the aid and directed the concerned institutions to immediately extend required assistance to Afghanistan.

Pakistan’s armed forces also said that they are “ready to provide all possible humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan.”

The Government and people of Pakistan extended their deepest condolences and sympathies over the loss of precious lives in the neighbouring country.

The tremors were also felt in the border regions of Pakistan as well as Islamabad.

KP province sends relief goods separately

Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which shares a border with Afghanistan, dispatched separate aid to support earthquake-affected families in Afghanistan. At least five 5 trucks loaded with relief items including tents, kitchen sets, non-food items (NFIs) and mattresses were sent on Thursday, local officials said. KP Chief Minister Mahmood Khan said that the province will soon dispatch more relief goods, medical teams, and medicines.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Rescue 1122 emergency service has also deployed teams and ambulances in the border areas. Image Credit: Rescue 1122

Ambulances and health teams are on alert

The North Waziristan District (NWD), located on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, has also mobilised rescue and health teams to help the injured in the neighbouring country. The NWD administration “is providing all-out support in easy passage of pedestrian movement, shifting of injured to DHQ (district headquarters hospital) Miranshah” and at least six ambulances have been deployed at Ghulam Khan border terminal, according to the official statement.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Rescue 1122 emergency service has also deployed teams and ambulances in the border areas in Torkham, Angoor Adda, and Ghulam Khan to transport injured Afghan people to nearby hospitals, said Khateer Ahmad, the Director General at Rescue 1122.

The Taliban government have said that they have received immediate relief supplies by land from Pakistan and by air from Iran and Qatar.