October 11, 2005 Silver Spring, Maryland, United States …. [ADRA/ANN Staff]
With the major earthquake that struck Pakistan, India and Afghanistan on Oct.8, causing tremendous destruction and leaving tens of thousands feared dead, thousands are responding with various forms of aid. The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) has established an emergency team to assist with the implementation of emergency relief projects in Kashmir, such as the distribution of tents, blankets and food.
In its first international shipment of aid, ADRA International is airlifting 20 boxes of medicine from Malaysia to the Islamabad airport, the group said.
“Each box can treat 1,000 patients for 90 days”, said Raafat Kamal, regional vice president of ADRA’s Trans-European office. The boxes can be used for distribution by small medical teams in rural areas.
ADRA Germany is preparing an airlift of antibiotics and anti-bacterial equipment valued at U.S. $84,000 to be distributed by the ADRA team in the disaster-struck area. ADRA is also dispatching a medical team to Kashmir to assist with the distribution of medical supplies and attend to the health concerns of those injured in the earthquake.
To coordinate relief efforts on the ground, ADRA is setting up an office in Rawalpindi, a city near Islamabad, Pakistan, and a field office in District Bagh, where authorities have already given ADRA permission to begin relief activities.
“We have a major crisis on our hands and we are trying our best to meet the needs of the people of Pakistan,” Kamal added.
Related Sites
See ADRA’s Website to assist in ADRA’s response to the South Asia earthquake or contact ADRA at 800-424-2372 in the United States, or donate online to ADRA’s South Asia Earthquake Relief Fund at www.adra.org.
Copyright © 2005 by Adventist News Network.
