The focus of our work over the next few days will be on distributing blankets, warm clothes for children and setting up safe play areas for children.

Toby Porter, Director of Emergencies, Save the Children UK said today “The international community needs to show the same speed, generosity and determination in getting aid to the survivors of this disaster as in the immediate aftermath of the tsunami. Quick delivery of aid will prevent further loss of life from exposure and disease."

Save the Children released £50,000 from the Emergency Reserves within hours of the quake striking, in order to provide immediate relief and protection.

We have launched an urgent appeal, asking the public for £500,000. To donate to this appeal please call 0207 012 6400 or click here to donate online..

Two Emergency Response and Logistics experts departed UK for Islamabad Sunday 9th October, with a further two leaving for India Monday 10th from neighbouring Sri Lanka. Additional specialist emergency personnel are being mobilised in UK,in neighbouring countries and throughout the region, for immediate despatch to both India and Pakistan.

The situation in Pakistan
Staff in Muzzafrabad estimate that thousands have died in this one town alone, with many people still trapped or lost in the debris. It took our team five hours to reach the area on foot as the roads have been destroyed. Helicopters are urgently needed to access the other affected areas, many of which have not yet been reached.

Save the Children emergency staff were deployed to disaster area this morning as part of a joint assessment with other agencies. We have been informed that the assessment teams have been facing difficulties in getting through to the worst affected areas due to landslides.

The first information we have is that the situation is worsening by the hour as the full horror of this quake becomes apparent.

The situation in India
The magnitude of the earthquake is the highest recorded so far in Jammu and Kashmir. The state is among the most vulnerable in the country to earthquakes, according to the National Institute of Disaster Management. The last major quake to hit the area was on 19th November 1996, measuring 6.9 on the Richter scale
Most of the deaths in Jammu and Kashmir were caused by building collapses. Save the Children staff are currently surveying the destruction and the impact on the lives of children and families in Baramulla District, one of the areas worst affected on the Indian side.

In the northern part of the district, Save the Children staff are reporting that about 80-90 per cent of buildings are described as being damaged or destroyed. The town of Uri, near the epicentre, and about 57 villages nearby were especially hard hit. The death count is expected to rise as the debris is cleared.

Within a few hours after the disaster, Save the Children's local team based in Srinagar reached Baramulla District started assessments in villages in Baramulla District.
With winter setting in, the number of people left homeless will be the most serious issue for the region.

Brian Heidel, Director of Save the Children's India programme has said “"We must focus on helping the living,"

Please help our response to this emergency