Phase 1: Immediate Response
On September 1st, a 6.0 magnitude shallow earthquake struck the Eastern Afghanistan provinces of Kunar & Nangarhar. The quake was felt as far as Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, & India; USGS reports over 1.2 million people felt the earthquake & it’s 5 aftershocks. Over 800 people have been confirmed dead, with thousands more injured. It is reported that hundreds of homes are completely destroyed. The mountainous and remote area makes it difficult for recovery efforts and accurate reports of damage, so far. Much of Kunar has been already under distress over the past few days with flooding from heavy rains.
GEM MENA is responding immediately to the region, to offer critical supplies for those affected. The GEM MENA team also had responded to the 2023 Herat earthquakes in Afghanistan; please see here for more on that response.