Tiny Radio Station Keeps Pakistan Earthquake Victims Company

Emanating from a city that was mostly destroyed by October’s magnitude 7.6 earthquake, which killed an estimated 87,000 people and left 3.2 million homeless, Radio Muzaffarabad has provided victims with a vital link to the outside world and informed them of the availability of critical services. ”It’s 5 p.m., and this is Radio Muzaffarabad,” began Fida Kazimi in his native Urdu, his delivery monotone. ”This is the news from the earthquake zone.” Dressed in a woolen peasant cap and jacket, Kazimi reported on newly opened roads, relief distribution and clinic hours as his partner, Abdul Rahman, punctuated every dead space with ”Gi, gi, gi,” or ”Yes, yes, yes.”