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Crisis Looms as Bitter Cold, Blackouts Hit Tajikistan
With millions of people left without electricity, heat or running water, aid organizations are warning of a growing humanitarian crisis. For the past 15 days, there has been no heat, electricity or running water in the freezing maternity ward of a small country hospital in the Tajik capital, Dushanbe. In that time, Adolat Shoreva and her small team of nurses have helped deliver 13 babies by candlelight. "In my 40 years as a nurse, I've never seen it this bad," Shoreva says. "I sit in the dark at night and cry." The unusually cold winter has overwhelmed the country's aging Soviet-era infrastructure, leaving millions of people cold, in the dark, without access to clean water. Aid workers say that even before this crisis, more than 60 percent of the population was living below the poverty line. With many Tajiks spending what little money they have on fuel to heat their homes, the country is about to face widespread food shortages, says the United Nation's Zlatan Milisic. "Increased food prices, previous reduced harvests, very, very cold weather, and the energy crisis have all contributed to the fact that the people are not able to cope anymore on their own," he says. Posted by: Steve White 2008-02-11 |
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