UN flood aid appeal jumps amid disease surge in Pakistan
The United Nations is asking for five times' more international aid after deadly floods in Pakistan left millions of survivors homeless and at rising risk of waterborne diseases
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Alarmed by a surge in disease, the United Nations is asking for five times’ more international aid after deadly floods in Pakistan left millions of survivors homeless and at rising risk of waterborne diseases and other ailments.
The U.N. on Tuesday raised its request to $816 million from $160 million, saying recent assessments pointed to the urgent need for long-term help lasting into next year.
The request in Geneva came a day after Julien Harneis, the U.N. coordinator for Pakistan, said diseases such as malaria, dengue fever, scabies and malnutrition are fueling a “second wave of death and destruction," with children and women in its path.
Floods in impoverished Pakistan have affected 33 million people and killed at least 1,696 since mid-June. Pakistan says the record-breaking floods have caused at least $30 billion in damages. The disaster displaced 7.9 million people. Of them, half a million are still living in tents and makeshift homes.
