Summary and Highlights

Days since October 8th Earthquake:165

• Rain over the weekend and start of the week has once again caused landslides and difficult road conditions throughout the affected area.
• UNJLC's mandate in the Pakistan operation is due to end on April 12th. A request has now been filed by the HC in Pakistan to retain a UNJLC presence in-country until June 30th. 
• Helicopter capacity has decreased once again with reductions this week with the cancellation of three additional UNHAS Mi-8s, bringing the UNHAS fleet down to 13 aircraft.
  

Contents

1.    Road Access
2.    Muzaffarabad Update
3.    UNJLC Mission Update
4.    Aviation Update: Helicopter Status


1. Road Access

Once again, rainfall over the weekend and start of the week caused landslides and trouble spots on many roads over the affected area. The road from Bagh through Sudhan Ghali to Rerban has now been reopened but a high risk of landslides still remains. Meanwhile in the Muzaffarabad region, the Jheelum and Neelum Valley roads remain Red No Go due to ongoing rockfalls and landslides. For daily road status updates and corresponding maps please see www.unjlc.org/pakistan.

2. Muzaffarabad Update

UNJLC Muzaffarabad has been collaborating with UNDSS and UNOPS to collect accurate first hand GPS coordinates and road status information on Muzaffarabad area roads and blockage points. On March 22nd, UNJLC and UNDSS performed a recce on the route from Bheri to Partika, which is closed to UN vehicles due to landslides. The terrain was covered in a four hour walk under full MOSS conditions by carrying a 20 kg CODAN Man Pack, ancillary communications equipment and support and safety gear. Through this approach it is hoped that a full roads map can be created before the end of the relief operation to facilitate the return and reconstruction effort. UNJLC and UNDSS will continue to map and assess roads perceived too difficult for vehicle operations using a system of UNHAS airdrops followed by a survey carried out on foot or with the use of mountain bikes.

The March 22nd Bheri expedition was organised to support a UNICEF school in a box helicopter drop. UNJLC and UNDSS took part under an initiative of operational facilitation established by the Muzaffarabad hub. This approach involves UNJLC, UNDSS, UNOPS and UNHAS cooperation to help place agencies and NGOs in areas which would otherwise be impossible to reach. Last week UNJLC facilitated a mission to fly a WHO vaccination team into a remote valley which has been cut off by road for several months. UNOPS mountaineers and UNDSS ensured the safety of the mission during the five hour window in which it took place.
 
3. UNJLC Mission Update

As mentioned in bulletin 36, item 4, UNJLC's mandate in Pakistan officially ends on April 12th. Two weeks ago UNJLC forwarded a questionnaire to the Heads of Clusters to determine which of UNJLC's current functions may be required after this date, although not necessarily under UNJLC responsibility. The information from these questionnaires has now been collated, and as a result the Humanitarian Coordinator has formally requested the extension of UNJLC's mandate until the end of June. This request is currently being processed in Rome.

4. Aviation Update: Helicopter Status

As reported in previous bulletins, UNHAS is in the process of reducing its fleet through the course of the month from 28 aircraft tasked on a daily basis to 13 aircraft in total. This reduction includes the eight military aircraft presently tasked by UNHAS (four US Chinooks, two German Stallions and two Australian Blackhawks, all of which are due to cease operations on March 31st) plus a total of seven UNHAS aircraft, including three Mi-8s which are leaving this week. The new fleet plan of 13 UNHAS aircraft has been designed to meet the continuing needs of helicopter support to the humanitarian community based on the users' projected needs. Meanwhile the French government was unable to meet the FRC's request to keep the French fuel farm in-country until June 1st. The fuel farm has now ceased operations in accordance with its mandate which ends on March 31st. UNHAS will continue to operate out of Abbottabad for the time being by using bowsers to provide its fuel supply.

Merlin is currently operating one Mi-8 which serves for both cargo and passenger transport to the 5 medical facilities it has established in remote locations of the affected area, as well as for the transport of an AMMT (Airlifted Medical Mobile Team) to reach the most inaccessible parts of the Neelum valley. The aircraft is also called upon to perform an average 6 - 8 medevacs per week alongside those carried out by ICRC and UNHAS. Merlin has sufficient funding to retain the use of this aircraft until April 30, however after this date it will once again be dependent on UNHAS for its continuing needs.

Due to bad weather, cargo and passenger flights were cancelled on March 19th and on March 20th only the German Stallions flew. The current backlog of air cargo is 4290 MT, most of which is food. Below are the totals of air cargo moved over the last week by UNHAS-tasked flights.