Acute shortage of fuel continues to impede planned deliveries of relief supplies to the earthquake-affected villages, the Kathmandu-based humanitarian community said on Friday.

Protests and demonstrations called by Madhes-based political parties in key Nepal-India customs points for the last 23 days caused the shortage of fuel and other essentials, affecting life across the country.

Hundreds of tonnes of food materials meant for the earthquake victims are said to be stuck in warehouses. This has become a major concern for the humanitarian community.

“Eighty percent of the supplies are warehoused in the districts, but acute shortages in fuel supplies continue to impede planned deliveries to affected villages and trailheads for onward transportation using mules and porters,” Jamie McGoldrick, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Nepal, said in a statement.

The onset of winter in Nepal is projected to have an adverse impact on earthquake-affected communities living in high altitude. The humanitarian agencies are facing a race against time to ensure delivery of urgently required supplies such as food and shelter materials to these high altitude areas that will soon be cut off with the onset of winter.

“Only a small time window remains before the available land access trails become closed in the coming weeks. Due to limited ability to conduct deliveries by road and air during the recent monsoon season, a backlog of 1,200 MT of shelter and non-food item supplies is awaiting delivery to earthquake-affected population”, said McGoldrick.

It is of critical importance to deliver supplies to the trailheads by end of October as the passes in the Himalayas will be at increased risk of being blocked by snowfall.

According to the statement, the humanitarian community is implementing contingencies to address the fuel shortages and to increase its capacity to deliver the supplies within an ever-decreasing window of opportunity.