Afghanistan quake kills hundreds

MICHELLE BOORSTEIN THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

KABUL, Afghanistan -- A powerful earthquake devastated mountain villages in northern Afghanistan, where officials estimated hundreds had died and thousands more were injured in a region hard-hit by hunger, drought and war.

Afghan government officials initially said 1,800 were killed, but aid agencies estimated early today that the death toll was much lower. Ros O'Sullivan, project coordinator from Concern Worldwide, said aid workers believe 200 people were killed in the town of Nahrin and surrounding villages in the Hindu Kush mountains.

The toll could go somewhat higher, he said, but was not expected to exceed "the low hundreds," O'Sullivan said. That conclusion was reached Tuesday night during a meeting of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the International Organization for Migration, Medecins Sans Frontieres, Concern Worldwide, and other relief groups working at the scene.

The military commander from the Baglan region said the Monday night quake collapsed 20,000 mud-brick houses. Gen. Haider Khan estimated between 600 and 1,000 people remained trapped and said the death toll could hit 2,000.

Yusuf Nuristani, a government spokesman, told reporters in Kabul that the death toll had reached 1,800 by Tuesday afternoon with 2,000 injured. Kabul television later reported 5,000 hurt. In Geneva, U.N. spokeswoman Elisabeth Byrs said Afghan authorities had initially reported the death toll could reach 4,800.

O'Sullivan said aid agencies estimated that up to 30,000 people were homeless, as aftershocks continued to jolt the majestic Hindu Kush mountains that tower above Kabul and separate the capital from the extreme north of the country.

There were fears of landslides as the earth continued to heave after quake, which was centered about 105 miles north of Kabul.

No Americans or foreigners were known to be among the missing or dead.

The Olympian Copyright 2002

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