UNITED NATIONS TEAM TO ASSESS IMPACT OF EARTHQUAKES IN IRAN

UNITED NATIONS TEAM TO ASSESS IMPACT OF EARTHQUAKES IN IRAN

NEW YORK, 31 March (OCHA) -- On 1 April, the United Nations in Iran is sending a team comprised of representatives of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to assess the damage caused by a series of earthquakes which hit Iran’s western Lorestan province on Thursday, 30 March.  So far, initial reports have confirmed 66 people killed and more than 1,200 injured.  The number of affected persons is expected to rise.

The quakes, measuring between 2.8 to 6.0 on the Richter scale, mainly affected the industrial cities of Doroud and Boroujerd; however, provincial authorities estimate that there are more than 200 villages between the two cities which have suffered substantial damage.  A number of villages were completely destroyed, with some villages suffering between 30-100 per cent damage.

The Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have dispatched a team of experts to the affected area.  The Government has also mobilized the military to aid in search and rescue operations and emergency response.  The Iranian Red Crescent Society is working in the affected areas and has begun distributing relief aid.  According to provincial authorities, the most urgent needs include blankets, tents, heaters and food.

At this point, the Government of Iran has not requested international assistance.  The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is in close contact with the UN Resident Coordinator and the OCHA Liaison Office in Tehran.

The most disastrous Iranian quake in recent years came on 26 December 2003, when a tremor measuring 6.7 on the Richter scale destroyed the ancient city of Bam in south-eastern Kerman province, killing over 43,000 people and leaving hundreds of thousands homeless

For further information, please call:  Stephanie Bunker, OCHA- New York, tel: +1 917 367 5126, mobile: +1 917 892 1679; Kristen Knutson, OCHA- New York, tel: +1 917 367 9262; Elizabeth Byrs, OCHA-Geneva, tel: +41 22 917 2653, mobile: +41 79 473 4570.

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For information media • not an official record