Following the earthquake, where the Pakistan Army, international organizations and international and local NGOs worked together to provide relief assistance to the earthquake-affected population, many citizens of Pakistan from all over the country also moved to reach Muzaffarabad. One could see cars, pick-ups and vans in bumper-to-bumper traffic on Kohala road. The vehicles were packed full. Some cars had a few blankets while bigger vehicles had water, biscuits, blankets and clothing. The vehicles carried volunteers who were heading towards Muzaffarabad to help in the rescue and relief effort. They had no idea what they were going to do once they reached the city, but they knew they wanted to help the quake victims in whatever way they could.

While these volunteers left their families safe and sound, there was another set of volunteers who chose to assist the wounded, shelterless and vulnerable. These were the volunteers from the quake-affected areas. These brave souls set out to rescue or assist others in need. Among hundreds and hundreds of such volunteers attached to many organizations, I talked to a few from the Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS) in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

In the shadow of great loss, the hero within

"The earthquake brought out heroes from within," said Kashif Mumtaz, one of the many volunteers. Hailing from Muzaffarabad city, he lost his father and younger brother in the quake, but decided to help the injured and disoriented and guide them to safe places. "I had never would have thought that I would continue to help people after losing two members of my immediate family. I suppose under normal circumstances, I would have reacted differently. I decided to try to keep others from meeting the same fate. Maybe God wanted me to save people," he added.

Kashif said that it was difficult to mobilize people for collective action such as preparing shelter as it started to rain that evening. "The situation was such that everyone was looking after his own family. I tried to persuade several people to work together to construct a temporary shelter where we all could spend the night instead of being under open sky. They told me not to be a leader." Kashif said that following the quake he joined the PRCS as a volunteer and worked in remote areas. The PRCS had about 300 volunteers working in the quake-affected areas – Kashmir and the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP).



Impossible choice

Mazhar Kazmi is another PRCS volunteer who, after finding his immediate family safe and sound, went on to look for other family members. "On my way, an elderly woman asked me to rescue her son and daughter from the rubble. I stopped to help them. While I was coming to their rescue, my own cousin was fighting for his life under the rubble of his school. "When I finally reached the school and managed to rescue my cousin, he died in my arms," says Mazhar with eyes rolled up as if to stop tears from flowing down his face. "Frankly, I have no regrets. It was God's will," he added, with a composed voice.

"We spent endless days and nights in remote areas in order to distribute relief items. Sometimes shipments took a long to arrive. We spent one week in utter cold with rain and snow in a makeshift arrangement," said Tassawar Gardezi, another PRCS volunteer since 2000 and a Master Trainer in First Aid.

Tassawar said that it was satisfying work but at the same time he had some regrets regarding situations where he blamed himself for not doing enough. "In Garhi Dopatta, I tried to stop six female teachers from going any further but they did not listen to me. They all died in a landslide." He said that he had tried his utmost to reason with them, to no avail.

How many of these volunteers lost their own family members while they stopped to help others? How many took time out only to dig the graves of their own loved ones and then carried on helping others in distress? How many of these volunteers faced imminent death on different occasions in their determination to help? How many are haunted by images of people dying in front of them? Nobody knows, but these unsung heroes continue to work with great passion and conviction regardless of the cost.