Nov. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Winter storms in Pakistan's mountainous Kashmir region forced relief organizations to interrupt helicopter flights bringing aid to more than 3 million people left homeless by last month's earthquake.

Flights carrying supplies to villages above 1,500 meters (5,000 feet) were suspended over two days beginning on Nov. 26, the International Organization for Migration said in an e-mailed statement late yesterday from Pakistan's capital, Islamabad. More bad weather is forecast for the rest of this week, it said.

``This is why operation `Winter Race' is so crucial for the people of this region,'' said Zel Mengistu, the IOM's field coordinator in the region, according to the statement. ``The cold weather is here, the snow has fallen, and roads are closed. We are racing to save people's lives.''

The Oct. 8 earthquake killed 73,331 people in Pakistan and more than 1,200 on the Indian side of divided Kashmir. The first cold-related deaths in the quake-hit region were reported with two children dying of pneumonia and a man from hypothermia, the United Nations said yesterday on its Web site.

The temperature will drop to as low as 10 degrees centigrade below freezing (14 degrees Fahrenheit) today in villages at 8,000 feet and above near Muzaffarabad, Pakistan's weather office forecast yesterday on its Web site.

The weather office forecasts snowfalls of as much as 10 feet this winter above 8,000 feet in the earthquake region.

Villages Threatened

Parts of at least 12 villages in the area may need to be evacuated because they are threatened by landslides and floods, Jean Schneider, a geologist from the Vienna-based Centre of National Hazards and Risk Management, told the UN news agency, IRIN, yesterday.

``Parts of mountains are slipping away and whole sides of mountains have come down,'' said Schneider, who is a UN consultant advising the Pakistani government on landslides. ``We have to observe how fast they are opening. If they accelerate, people have to be taken out immediately.''

The storms triggered mud and rockslides, cutting off villages from aid, including blocking the Neelum Valley road, one of the main routes for bringing in supplies, the Geneva-based IOM said in its statement. Pakistani military engineers are working to clear roads, it said.

The IOM has a fleet of more than 200 trucks and jeeps using roads that are passable. Mule and donkey trains are also being used to carry tents and shelter equipment to communities living at high altitude, it said.

Meeting Goals

The milder weather last month means the IOM may meet its target of bringing 10,000 winterized shelters to communities situated between 5,000 and 7,000 feet by Dec. 12, the organization said.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees has airlifted 80,000 blankets and tens of thousands of plastic sheets to survivors in villages in the Allai and Leepa valleys, the UN said.

``All convoys are now driving on slippery roads that could be hit by further landslides,'' Jennifer Pagonis, a UNHCR spokeswoman, said yesterday, according to the UN Web site. ``On lower elevations, we're preparing the ground for more people forced to leave their homes in the upper valleys because of the bitter cold.''

Families Flee

The Pakistani army, in the past two days, reported 100 families a day moving down from the Kaghan valley, Pagonis said.

The UNHCR has 16 teams helping prepare camps in the lower areas for displaced people and deal with water and sanitation to prevent outbreaks of disease.

``The recent camp arrivals have come in bad shape,'' Pagonis said. ``Many of them already (are) weakened by pneumonia.''

The UN said yesterday relief operations have less than 50 percent of the funds needed to bring aid to survivors.

Pakistan on Nov. 19 received international aid pledges of $5.8 billion to be used to bring immediate relief supplies to survivors and to rebuild damaged cities in Pakistan's Kashmir region and North West Frontier province.

The UN said in a Nov. 25 statement it had received $216 million, or 39 percent, of the flash appeal.

About 1.3 million people are estimated as food insecure and the funding for food distribution may run-out by mid-winter. Pakistan's winter season starts in November and ends in March.

To contact the reporter for this story: Khalid Qayum in Islamabad, Pakistan kqayum@bloomberg.net; Paul Tighe in Sydney at ptighe@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: November 29, 2005 20:41 EST