A Pakistani girl waits in line for food near a river bank in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan. The U.N. World Food Program warned that half a million earthquake survivors have not received relief supplies. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel)
	This map shows the location of the earthquake that killed as many as 79,000 people.

Earthquake in Pakistan Kills Thousands

Many school children feared lost

An earthquake killed thousands of people in Pakistan. Thousands more who lived through the quake died later in hard to reach mountain areas or from the cold. Many of them died from injuries that could not be treated in time.

Thousands more people were in danger of dying a week after the quake. Rescuers had trouble getting aid to hundreds of villages.

The quake hit an area high in the Himalayan mountain rage. The area is in southern Asia.

The ground shook for about one minute when the quake hit on October 8.

Officials said as many as 79,000 people died during and after the quake. But the death toll will be hard to know for sure. Officials said many bodies were buried under buildings that collapsed. Other bodies were buried by landslides.

Bad weather also hurt rescue efforts

The only way to reach many villages was by walking or by helicopter. But bad weather on several days after the quake kept helicopters from flying.

One report said children suffered more than the rest of the population. Children attend classes on Saturdays in Pakistan. The quake hit on a Saturday morning.

The quake was felt in an area more than 600 miles across. The area covered parts of northern Pakistan, northern India and Afghanistan. The quake killed about 1,300 people in India.

More than two million people lost their homes in the quake. Many of the homeless had no place to sleep. Temperatures at night got cold enough to almost freeze water.

Tents were sent to the stricken areas. But officials said there were not enough tents for all the victims who needed them. 

Nations around the world send aid

Other countries sent military troops to help. The United States sent military helicopters from Afghanistan. Germany, Japan and Afghanistan also sent helicopters. Even India offered help. Pakistan borders on India. The two countries are long-time enemies.

American President George Bush also promised to give $50 million to help Pakistan rebuild. 

The United Nations was helping. Jan Egeland is United Nations coordinator of emergency relief. He warned that the helpers need to work together. He said “it will become a disaster within a disaster” if the groups do not work together.

Egeland also said replacing what was lost will cost billions of dollars. One billion dollars is 1,000 times a million dollars. Egeland also said rebuilding would take five to 10 years.