After the deluge... days of downpour that led to a massive human disaster

THE government of Pakistan estimates that more than 13 million people have so far been affected by the flood that first hit the country two weeks ago. That's two million more than the combined toll of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, the 2005 Kashmiri earthquake and the 2010 Haiti earthquake, according to the UN.

There have been fewer deaths so far in the floods – about 1,500 people –but a massive train of displaced humanity is on the move, escaping the raging flow, the flooded valleys and plains, and leaving behind homes and livelihoods to find relief and live for who-knows-how-long in crowded camps set up by aid agencies.

Continuing torrential rain in some parts of the country is impeding the arrival of aid to certain areas, including the Swat Valley, where up to 600,000 people are thought to be marooned.

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Sean Kenny, who's from Bridlington, is an emergency specialist with the charity ActionAid. He has spent recent days in the southern area of the central province of Punjab, as heavy rains continued to pound the countryside.

"The flooding started the weekend before last, in the mountainous north, where bridges, roads and villages were washed away. The water then flowed down on to the plains, where it has now been sitting for several days, with more heavy rains falling for between one and five hours at a time. Think of the worst downpour you'll ever see in Britain, and imagine that going on relentlessly for five hours.

"I've talked to a lot of people here, and many say that when they first saw the rains they just shrugged. It's the monsoon season, after all. But they were quickly side-swiped by the scale of it. Considering that so many villages are under water – in one place all the villages across an area of 30km were submerged – with homes lost and crops destroyed, the people are upset yet incredibly calm in the face of the disaster. They are very stoical."

When the seriousness of the flooding quickly became apparent, families gathered all the children and grandparents, cooking pots, stoves and as many animals as they could manage, and joined a mass exodus. Some didn't make it, delaying too long and becoming swept away by the vicious charge of the water.

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"I've seen thousands of people on the road, moving slowly, trying to get to higher ground," says Sean. In the camps at Layyah, ActionAid has reached more than 3,000 people with oil, flour, fresh vegetables and pulses. A field office at Chowk Mallah has given out food supplies, hygiene kits and medical care to about 2,500, focusing particularly on vulnerable women and children. Many men have stayed near their villages, attempting to protect valuables like corrugated iron roofing from looters. They sit on the roofs with the water all around them, says Sean, determined to defend their homes in whatever way they can.

Many schools and colleges, closed for the summer, have been used as temporary camps. ActionAid has been giving out hot food in the first instance, but also pots and supplies, so that the refugees can be more self-sufficient. Doctors and other health workers have been drafted in to survey the displaced thousands for signs of illness – particularly cholera, which is the most likely due to so much standing water encouraging the breeding of mosquitoes.

For the moment at least, the Punjab is seeing some lowering of water levels. The intense rains and flooding have moved south, to Sindh

Province. More tens of thousand join the exodus, more aid is required, and more strength of spirit is needed by the millions who find

themselves homeless or their homes seriously damaged.

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"I asked people what they planned to do, and they said 'wait, then go back'. They are used to drought, hard times, and being at the mercy of the elements. Many are very religious and say God will provide for them. I have been so impressed by the generous response of ordinary people, feeding not only their own relatives but other hungry people. They accept that going back and rebuilding what they had will take a long time. What's needed now is long-term planning for replacement of their homes but also the food they need to grow to live and the cash crops they grow, like cotton."

"The devastation that was caused in only a few days will take years to recover from. But there's no hysteria here. Ordinarily life here is hard for a lot of people and they have to be tough. But now it is much harder still."

n To donate to the flood appeal, go to www.dec.org.uk, call 0370 60 60 900 or send a cheque to Dec Pakistan Floods Appeal, PO Box 999, London EC3A 3AA (please make cheques payable to Dec Pakistan Floods Appeal).

n http://www.actionaid.org.uk

THE SURVIVORS' STORIES

Here two of the 780 displaced people staying in an ActionAid temporary relief camp in Kot Sultan, Layyah, Punjab talk of their experiences:

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n The floods which have devastated Pakistan are the worst in living memory for most – but not for Gul Mohammad, who's over 80. The last time Pakistan was so badly affected by flooding was in 1929, when he was a small boy.

His family were farmers and he can remember being taken back over a month after the waters had receded, finding his home smashed to pieces.

"It took us five or six years to rebuild everything that time," he said. "For that time we had no money. We were dependent on God. "

His village is called Jamrid Nasheb and is only five kilometres from the River Indus. Three days before it was flooded this year government officials came to warn the villagers about the impending disaster.

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"We didn't believe them, so we waited," he said. "We thought they wanted us to leave because the land we live on is owned by the government and we were afraid of losing it. It started raining in the night. It rained for five hours and the river level started to rise. I didn't sleep. I thought we were all finished.

"We left our homes at around 9pm and went to a hill nearby. We had to leave in the morning and the water all around was chest deep. When I looked back it had risen higher, over the roofs, and our village looked like a lake. We walked for two hours with our children on our shoulders."

Mr Mohammad's family lost a cow and five goats. The village of 150 households lost 450 cattle – a major source of income and extremely expensive to replace.

He has now been in the camp for five days and is worried about his home. "We left jewellery and other valuables in steel boxes. They might have been washed away, but if not, then we've heard thieves are going around the villages in boats to steal our valuables.

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"I just want to go back home. As soon as possible my family will return, and we'll start rebuilding."

n Saddan Mai, who is in her 50s, is from a village called Dhumb Basti, which is in between two branches of the Indus.

"We were expecting floods," she said. "But we thought they would be like the previous ones. This is the first time I've seen flooding like this. We were warned but we didn't take it seriously because we are the children of the river, it is our life. We live next to it so we weren't worried – we know the river. We've been warned before but the water always recedes before it can damage our homes. "

The first sign that something unusual was happening was just after breakfast.

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"Some of the men were in the fields and they came rushing back saying a big flood was coming from the river. Then when the water came, it came all of a sudden. We ran to the embankment but the water carried on rising. We had to wade through the water, it came up to my nose. We had some tractor and bicycle inner tubes for the kids and the adults swam. All this only took five minutes.

"I wasn't thinking of anything. It was each person for themselves, trying to save their own life. There was only sky and water. After about an hour we reached a safe place. Fortunately, no one was killed. We were safe for a bit but then there was a breach in a canal and more water was coming, so we had to leave.

"The roofs of our village were visible but now I'm hearing that the waters have risen even higher and you can't see them. We lost a year's worth of wheat we had stored. "

She also lost a calf, a goat and 10 hens, but her family managed to save three cows and two buffalo.

"It was early in the morning and the livestock were in the forest, so

they were away from the river. But they still had to swim out."

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