Pakistan hit by major floods

We have launched a flood appeal in Pakistan to help children in Pakistan during the current flooding.  See our Pakistan appeal for more information.

Devastating floods have hit north-west Pakistan and Afghanistan in the last few days.  1,100 people are confirmed dead and many more are missing, including women and children. At least one million people have been affected by the floods, and up to 27,000 are stranded.  The situation may get worse before it gets better, as more rain is forecast to hit the region in the next few days.  The north-west region of Pakistan is particularly poor, with infrastructure and medical supplies lacking.  There are fears that the flooding could lead to a large influx of water-borne diseases, such as cholera.

SOS Children is relieved that all of its villages in the north of Pakistan have so far escaped floods that brought death and havoc to parts of the north-west region.

Earlier today SOS Children was particularly concerned that our village at Dhodial, in the north-west, may be affected. But the president of SOS Pakistan, Mrs Sourija Anwa, currently on a visit to the UK, was able to contact colleagues in Pakistan and establish that all were safe and that none of the eight SOS Children’s Villages in the country had been damaged.

SOS Children has a history of providing emergency relief for disaster areas.  In 2005, after the Kashmir earthquake, an Emergency Relief Programme was launched, providing aid to children and families across the affected area.  In the aftermath, the Pakistani Government asked SOS Children to care for unaccompanied children separated from their families by the earthquake.

Further information will be shown on this site when it becomes available.  Meanwhile, if you would like to make a donation to SOS Children’s Villages Pakistan, please visit the regular or one-off donation pages. If you can, please consider sponsoring a child in Pakistan.