ISLAMABAD, Oct 29: The Thori park camp in Muzaffarabad will soon be one of the largest emergency settlements in Azad Kashmir. The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) has provided a Pakistani charitable group constructing the camp with 550 of the 600 tents being placed on the site. Each tent will be able to accommodate one family.

The UNHCR is working with many charities in Azad Kashmir to deliver shelter supplies such as tents, blankets and plastic sheets to survivors of the devastating earthquake.

“We have three main objectives in this area,” says Urooj Saifi, UNHCR team leader in Muzaffarabad. “We want to improve the conditions in many of the camps which sprung up after the quake. With the Pakistani authorities, we’re working to identify areas where more formal camps can be established. And we want to create camps away from the main centres, so that people living in the higher altitudes have a shorter distance to travel to find shelter.”

UNHCR recently delivered 300 tents to teams working in Hattian Bala, 35 kilometres from Muzaffarabad. Until earlier this week, the town had remained cut off. Traffic is still frequently stopped as the army uses explosives to clear boulders. Temporary metal spans have been laid over collapsed bridges.

From its regional base in Muzaffarabad, UNHCR has distributed 1,800 tents, 5,000 blankets and thousands of plastic sheets, stoves and other supplies. Elsewhere in the quake zone, UN refugee agency teams are working with the army to set up and support camps.