UNJLC Pakistan Earthquake
BULLETIN No. 20
Period, Tuesday November 22nd – Thursday, November 24th 2005

UNJLC Bulletins aim to provide a clear and concise regular overview of the situation as it exists in the earthquake-affected area of Pakistan and contiguous areas with regards to logistics matters affecting relief work by the humanitarian community. They focus on practical issues that affect the welfare of the afflicted populace and related humanitarian work such as the status of transport routes for humanitarian supplies and personnel into the area, relevant administrative or commercial developments, air (including strategic airlift and helicopter operations), Customs and immigration matters, and availability of accommodation and fuels. They further seek to identify major issues for the humanitarian community and other interested parties, to provide relevant background and constructive recommendations on current issues, and to alert responsible parties to emerging issues. This bulletin was produced daily from October 17th – 22nd but as the emergency matured was then produced on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. From this week, it is produced on Mondays and Thursdays.

• The schedule for the UNJLC Bulletin and for the Islamabad Logistics Cluster meeting will change this week form three times per week to two, on Mondays and Thursdays.
• The DFID Chinook operation to lift cargos forward has proved to be a resounding success with
• The Pakistani Army Survey Group, with the assistance of the Turkish Disaster Management Team, is mapping damage in the affected area in a manner that should assist agencies in planning humanitarian corridors.

Contents
1.    Schedules: Bulletins and Logs Meetings
2.    DFID Chinook Operation: Update
3.    Mapping: Pakistani Army Survey Group
4.    Aviation Update: Helicopter Trends

1.    Schedules: Bulletin and Logs Meetings

As the emergency response to the October 8th, 2005 earthquake nears the end of its seventh week, and as the crisis has matured, the UNJLC Pakistan Bulletin will now be produced twice-weekly, on Mondays and Thursdays, instead of thrice-weekly.

The focus of reporting will shift to more stand-alone updates on key logistical issues and more frequent situation reports, as demanded by the situation where the humanitarian community faces the challenges of winter. With the rains and snow imminent and most strategic elements of the response now in place, the need is for greater on-the-ground information to support co-ordination and planning such as operational updates on road conditions.

A thrice-weekly Bulletin may be reinstated if popular demand dictates so.

The schedule for the Islamabad Logistics Cluster Meeting in Islamabad, currently held every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 8:30an at the former WFP Afghanistan Liaison Office (where UNJLC’s Pakistan headquarters are located) has also been altered. As of the week commencing November 28th, the meeting will be held on a twice weekly basis, on Monday and Thursday, at the same time and location.

All actors with logistical concerns, particularly local and international NGO’s, are welcome to this meeting which in itself provides an invaluable networking opportunity. 

2. DFID Chinook Operation: Update

The recently completed DFID airlift operation conducted in the Muzaffarabad area by three RAF Chinooks - and coordinated by UNJLC/UNHAS - has proved to be enormously successful in supporting the push of the relief effort to remote areas to beat the onset of winter.

The six-day operation delivered approximately 850 tonnes of vital humanitarian supplies for IOM, UNHCR, WFP, Tear Fund and MSF Holland. The key benefit of the operation is that it allowed agencies to move forward several weeks’ worth of supplies to vulnerable populations in the affected area, ensuring that these people are securely sustained for a longer period. Without the operation, it would have been possible to shift only several days’ stocks forward. With winter imminent, this is particularly important aspect for those whom it may be difficult or impossible to resupply, even by helicopter, during the next three months.

The success of this coordinated approach can be contrasted to the normal operational tempo of the DFID/RAF Chinooks in the relief effort. The combination of only lifting pre-positioned cargo from Muzaffarabad and utilising sling nets increased the number of sorties flown in a typical day by, on average, a factor of five. The actual daily number of rotations varied from 16 to 29 rotations with a peak of 234 tonnes delivered in one day alone. In contrast, the previous operational routine averaged approximately three to four sorties and 40 tonnes per day. Approximately 75% of the cargo delivered was non-food items, including shelter repair kits, tents, blankets, and kitchen sets that together with food will allow people to sustain themselves over the winter until the reconstruction can begin in the spring.

The DFID helicopters will fly their last mission on November 25th, using one of the three machines, on a sortie not connected with the Muzaffarabad operation, before redeploying from the area. 

3. Mapping: Pakistan Army Survey Group

Since the earthquake, the Pakistan Army Survey Group has been developing a Geographic Information System (GIS) in order to collate and map relevant information on the damage caused by the earthquake in NWFP and Pakistani-administered Kashmir. In accomplishing this task, the Group has received assistance from the Turkish Disaster Management Team. To date, this cooperation has resulted in data being collected for the following areas: Tehsil Mansehra, Dev Ghrain, Kachi Basti, Bafa and Garhi Habibullah. It is hoped that data for Balakot will soon be available.

One of the key benefits from this system will be the provision of logistical information about road conditions. This will help to determine what routes will be the key humanitarian corridors over the winter months, thus assisting relief agencies in the field by providing them with a consolidated picture of the consequences for an affected population in the event that a road were closed by a landslide, snow, rain or degradation from overuse.

This information will be linked to data from the Government’s Meteorological Department (see Bulletin 15, item 5) to provide advanced warning to relief agencies for operational planning purposes.

The Group also plans to use information to support the rehabilitation phase of the relief effort. The survey team has been accompanied by town planners who provided inputs on the type/specifications of building to ensure that reconstructed buildings will be earthquake resistant. 

4. Aviation Update: Helicopter Trends

The use of helicopter assets in the relief operation has been a key factor in its successes to date. The helicopters operated by the Government of Pakistan, foreign militaries in support of the national authorities, the United Nations and other relief organisations have allowed the relief effort to avoid the logistical bottlenecks caused by the damage to the road network. Equally importantly, they have also facilitated access to areas that would be inaccessible for relief convoys even prior to the earthquake.

The graph below provides a summary of the number of helicopters operating and the nominal cargo capacity that they provide. Since the beginning of the operation, the number of helicopters available increased steadily before levelling out at approximately 100. However, more significant than the actual number of helicopters has been the actual types of helicopter. The deployment of heavy lift machines in the operation, including the Mi-26s chartered by UNHAS and the ICRC, CH-47 Chinooks from the US and UK, and CH-53 Sea Stallions from the US and NATO, through Germany, have been responsible for the significant increase in the cargo carrying capacity.

The helicopter fleet is expected to reduce during December as some US aircraft are redeployed and not replaced, and in January as NATO aircraft finish their mission. However, with more effective use of air assets and building on the work to date, the number of helicopters deployed is expected to be sufficient for the mission through to spring.