As the humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate in Pakistan following heavy monsoon rains, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is sending medical teams to some of the worst affected areas in the north, agency officials report.

ADRA’s response is targeting the Khyber-Pakhtunkwa Province’s Nowshera District, an area located northwest of the capital Islamabad that has experienced some of the heaviest flooding so far. As part of the intervention, ADRA plans to mobilize medical teams of doctors, nurses, and paramedics to local school, hospitals, and community centers. Site locations will be selected in collaboration with local and tribal authorities as well as the Pakistani army, which is also supporting the response efforts.

As waters in affected areas have become contaminated, medical responders are likely to treat many cases of diarrhea, fever, skin diseases, and eye infections, in addition to malaria and flu, paying special attention to the most vulnerable, including the elderly, pregnant women, and children. In the following weeks, health education will also be undertaken in schools to raise awareness regarding water-borne diseases and ways to treat those affected by them. This emergency response is expected to last two months and will benefit an area with an estimated population of 200,000 residents.

Funders for this US$102,000 response include ADRA International, ADRA Australia, ADRA Denmark, ADRA Norway, ADRA Sweden, ADRA United Kingdom, ADRA Canada, ADRA Austria, ADRA Netherlands, ADRA New Zealand, ADRA Portugal, ADRA Finland, and ADRA Korea.

According to the Pakistani government, 1,475 people have died, almost 1 million houses have been reported either damaged or destroyed, and 15.4 million people have been affected by the flooding. An ongoing threat flooding could further affect low-lying areas in the south.

Ongoing conflict in the border areas near Afghanistan has intensified the insecurity in much of the country, posing challenges for responding agencies. Floodwaters now cover approximately one-fifth of the country, report government officials. The loss of livestock, crops, homes, infrastructure, and transportation systems will further hamper long-term recovery efforts, and will adversely affect already impoverished areas.

ADRA is a global non-governmental organization providing sustainable community development and disaster relief without regard to political or religious association, age, gender, race or ethnicity. [Editor: John Torres for ADRA/APD]

For more information about ADRA, visit www.adra.org