Deputy Health Minister: Earthquake Victims in Kermanshah Still Lack Sanitation Facilities

The Deputy Health Minister states that Iran suffers from management weaknesses in dealing with natural disasters, exemplified by the lack of sanitation facilities for Kermanshah earthquake victims. Alireza Raisi, Deputy Minister of Health, on Tuesday, January 5, at the Earthquake Safety Day conference, spoke about the unpreparedness of agencies in the face of earthquakes. He pointed out deficiencies in the health and treatment sector, recalling that 'health colleagues began providing services 36 hours after the Kermanshah earthquake' and stated, 'We must seriously learn from these events; because what causes harm is not just the earthquake but our unpreparedness for earthquakes.' This health official noted that the country's management system has not learned from past disasters as it should, identifying 'management weakness' as the primary flaw in handling natural disasters. Alireza Raisi mentioned that 'people in Kermanshah still lack sanitation facilities, which is a very important issue. One must ask who is responsible for solving these problems... In Tehran, a 5.2 magnitude earthquake occurred, and everything locked down. I firmly say that if something had happened in Tehran, no one would have been able to help.' He cited cumbersome administrative procedures during natural disasters, saying, 'Immediately after the Kermanshah earthquake, I called the health deputy of the Medical Sciences University of the province and said to procure whatever you need, and we will send you the money, but the university's development deputy stated that equipment must first enter the warehouse before we can pay for it. This is administratively correct, but in crises, we must make quick decisions.' According to Alireza Raisi, the lack of health and treatment infrastructure is another major problem in the country. He stated that 84 health centers were destroyed in the Kermanshah earthquake, and health units are currently providing services in trailers. Alireza Raisi also emphasized that 97% of rural buildings in the country have low resistance to earthquakes, and a similar situation exists in cities, complicating access and rescue efforts due to improper density. The lack of adequate training for health and treatment personnel regarding natural disasters, delayed arrival of health alerts and necessary information to emergency operation centers or crisis rooms, and the dispatch of separate (not joint) teams to the disaster site are other deficiencies mentioned by the Deputy Health Minister. He also cited Shahroud and Dezful Medical Sciences Universities as successful examples in dealing with natural disasters, stating, 'Shahroud Medical Sciences University sent ready health house packages containing all necessary medicines and equipment to the region during the Kermanshah earthquake.' Conflicting statements about 'suicides' after the earthquake arose when Artin Kamali, the head of the forensic medicine department in Kermanshah province, announced on Wednesday that there had been no recorded suicide-related deaths following the Kermanshah earthquake. This comes after Shahab Nadri, a representative from Paveh, claimed that 20 earthquake victims had attempted suicide. The head of the forensic medicine department responded to the representative's statements, saying, 'If this representative's intention was merely to refer to suicide attempts and their failure, the provincial Medical Sciences University should comment on that, but if he meant the deaths of these individuals, I deny this because no suicide-related deaths have been recorded in forensic medicine since the Kermanshah earthquake.' Shahab Nadri also criticized the failure to fulfill officials' promises, stating that four earthquake victims lost their lives due to the cold. The 7.3 magnitude earthquake in Kermanshah on November 21, 2017, resulted in over 600 deaths and destroyed the homes of tens of thousands. Given the extent of the destruction, temporary housing has still not been distributed in these areas, and many are still spending nights in severe cold.