18 October 2005
During a recent patrol into the Ghandak Valley, Kiwi Team 3, part of the New Zealand Defence Force Provincial Reconstruction Team based in Bamyan, Afghanistan, carried in by donkey train a large quantity of food and reconstruction tools to a village devastated by floods earlier in the year.
In an earlier patrol, the members of Kiwi 3 located a village that had been almost completely swept away by floodwaters that had surged down a large valley system. The village leader said that seven people were killed and that two were still missing, presumed to be buried under tonnes of gravel and rock that lies where most of the village once stood. The families who remain occupy the mud houses on the sides of a hill that managed to survive the ordeal and in some cases 10 of more families now live in a space previously occupied by only a single one.
The soldiers who walked into the area with the donkeys and their handlers were amazed at just how much each donkey was able to carry. At times, due to the weight of their own equipment and ammunition, the patrol members to work hard to keep up with the donkeys. Upon reaching their destination, village elders and children turned out to help unload the animals and the smiles on their faces were all that was needed to show that such a small gesture can make a huge difference.
Image Gallery: Afghanistan
Photograph Caption:
All that remains after floodwaters and debris tore through the village of Anawa-I-Khurd.
This page was last reviewed on 16 November 2005 and is current.