In pictures: Earthquake Hits Pakistan-India Border
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Reuters - Sat Oct 8, 7:09 AM ET
An Indian man walks past debris of a collapsed house following an earthquake in Amritsar, in the northern state of Punjab, October 8, 2005. A major earthquake shook cities and villages across the south Asian subcontinent on Saturday, including the Pakistan capital Islamabad where scores of people were feared killed or trapped when two buildings collapsed. Officials said heavy casualties were expected in the north of Pakistan, but details were difficult to obtain because telephone lines were down and mobile networks overwhelmed. REUTERS/Munish Sharma -
Reuters - Sat Oct 8, 7:18 AM ET
Afghan men repair part of their damaged house in the eastern province of Nangarhar, Afghanistan, October 8, 2005. At least one person was killed in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday when a strong earthquake rocked Afghanistan, neighbouring Pakistan as well as India. REUTERS/Stringer -
Earthquake in Uri village
Introduction
David Escott is a software developer in Srinagar in Indian-controlled Kashmir. The day after the South Asian earthquake, he got in touch with the BBC News website and sent these pictures from his visit to the village of Uri close to Pakistani-controlled Kashmir.
When the earthquake struck, I was on my houseboat. A series of big waves swept the lake.
I went to Uri to assess the damage. This side of Kashmir isnÂ’t totally devastated but there is a real sense of fear and shock. -
Roadside casualty
Hafiz-u-Allah was sitting on the road outside the Uri hospital. He said that 20 people were killed in his village.
He was caught in between two houses. The walls collapsed on him, fracturing his leg and injuring his head. They were promised a helicopter by local government but it never materialised.
Friends and family carried him by stretcher on foot until a vehicle passed and gave them a lift to Uri. -
Uri relief camp
A relief camp was all set up and ready to go at Uri. It was full of officials and doctors, but no patients.
In Uri itself, there were no deaths. But many people are suffering from shock. They are being offered free phone calls to reach friends and family throughout India and across the world
Frustration sums up the atmosphere here: there was no massive destruction but people do need food, blankets and water – not medicine. -
Abdul Qadir and family
As we were walking up through the town and surveying the damage, we were invited into what remained of the homes of Abdul Qadir and his family.
The earthquake reduced these residences to rubble.
We spent quite some time with these families and they told us of the frustration in the village. The army have given them a tent to sleep in, but if not for that, they would have nothing. -
Staying philosophical
The student son of Abdul QadirÂ’s cousin sits amid the ruins of his home. It was totally flattened by the earthquake.
It must have been quite a nice and well-to-do house, with a computer – all that could be seen of that now was a mouse dangling from the rafter of a collapsed ceiling.
But people here are wonderful. They are mostly philosophical about the disaster, grateful to be alive. -
Difficult life
Life in this part of the world is difficult at the best of times. Villages here have been in the thick of the fighting, heavily shelled in the past.
But the army presence means they have supplies. Abdul Jan showed me the kerosene supply.
Last night saw the first snowfall. People can carry on outside for now. They have a fire pot for cooking, which they put under their cloaks. They are used to roughing it. -
Uri girls middle school
We suddenly came upon the school, set back from the main street.
There was nobody around save for some youngsters kicking about the rubble.
Thankfully nobody was hurt here when the earthquake struck, but I saw some satchels scattered outside. I donÂ’t know if they had been dropped while children were trying to escape. -
Buniyar Hindu temple
I came to visit this temple recently but couldnÂ’t get anywhere near because it is right in the middle of the army barracks.
When the troubles started in 1989, the Brahmins who looked after the temple were ejected.
Every August there is a big Hindu pilgrimage to Amarnath cave, where Shiva explained the mysteries of the universe to his wife Parvati.
The people of Kashmir are asking the same question of their God. -
Mosque and madrassa
The village is almost entirely Muslim now. The Madrassa and the mosque were also demolished by the earthquake.
Yet when I arrived there were a group of people praying on the road outside.
This earthquake is seen as an act of God. The people of this region felt abandoned anyway. It was almost as if the conflict in Kashmir had been forgotten by the world.
After this disaster, they feel quite alone. -
Rescue effort builds after quake
Bodies continue to be pulled from the rubble in Pakistan and India after a huge 7.6 magnitude earthquake shook the region on Saturday. Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, was one of the worst-hit towns, with about half of the buildings destroyed. -
Traumatised survivors have gathered in a stadium in Muzaffarabad. There was mounting anger as they spent their second night out in the open amid little sign of aid arriving but, with the clearing of a road to the city, rescuers are now getting through. -
As well as homes, businesses such as this shop in Uri, in Indian-controlled Kashmir, have been destroyed and the United Nations has estimated more than 2.5 million people have been left homeless. -
The once-thriving town of Balakot, in PakistanÂ’s North-West Frontier province, was flattened. Some survivors are being air-lifted to Islamabad but Pakistan's president says there is a shortage of helicopters. For many, the rescue effort comes too late. -
Pakistan's capital Islamabad was also hit. Many youngsters were among those injured and killed in a country where children make up half the population, prompting officials to speak of a "lost generation". -
In Srinagar, capital of Indian-administered Kashmir, residents refused to return to their homes on Sunday night after warnings of strong aftershocks. -
The disputed territory of Kashmir is highly militarised and in some areas, such as this town of Uri in Indian-controlled Kashmir where an army canteen was obliterated, the soldiers became victims. -
But the rescue effort began to whirr into motion in many areas. In a gesture of hope, PakistanÂ’s traditional rival India offered aid. -
Many countries have responded to Pakistan's pleas for assistance, providing money, aid supplies and expert personnel. Here, rescue personnel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, load up humanitarian aid. -
The quake toll stands at about 20,000 but is expected to rise, with some reports suggesting it could double. The earthquake, which has left behind such apocalyptic scenes as this, of Muzaffarabad, is the worst in the region's history. -
Muzaffarabad - ghost town
Muzaffarabad - the capital of Pakistani-administered Kashmir - looks like a ghost town after Saturday's powerful earthquake. -
Very little has been left standing - homes are still off-limits because of continuing aftershocks. -
Landslides have covered or pulled down buildings mercilessly. -
Residents have been removing rubble to find the occasional survivor. Death is all too close but seldom mentioned.