28 August 2010
The UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) has called on the Royal Air Force (RAF) to help provide more urgently-needed shelter for thousands of people driven from their homes in southern Pakistan, which has been hit hardest by the continuing floods.
A C17, the RAF’s largest transport aircraft, will fly in over 3,000 DFID shelter kits, scheduled to land in Islamabad this Saturday (28 August). The kits will provide more than 3,000 families, or over 15,000 people, with plastic sheeting, pegs and ropes, to erect temporary shelters for protection against the ongoing monsoon rains.
A second RAF flight, scheduled to land tomorrow (Sunday 29 August), will head directly into Multan in the southern province of Punjab, close to the areas currently most affected by the floods. The C130 Hercules will be the first RAF flight to fly UKaid straight into the south of the country, and will carry an additional 500-plus DFID shelter kits. This will provide shelter for some 500 families or 2,500 people whose homes have been damaged or destroyed.
Nick Harvey, Minister for the Armed Forces said:
“The disaster in Pakistan demands a coordinated international response. I am pleased that, while continuing to support our ongoing efforts in Afghanistan, the RAF has been able to provide air lift capacity to help the people of Pakistan. The Ministry of Defence will continue to do whatever we can to provide assistance to the Department for International Development in bringing essential aid supplies to the region.”
George Turkington, Head of DFID Pakistan, said:
“Rain continues to fall in southern Pakistan. High tides in the Arabian Sea and the clay soil in the region mean that flood waters will remain standing for some time to come. Huge areas remain submerged, houses are uninhabitable, and nearly four million people have had to leave their homes in the southern province of Sindh alone. “Aid needs to get here as quickly as possible to help these people - so the RAF’s support with these flights is invaluable. The DFID shelter kits that they’ve flown in will provide essential shelter for some 3,500 families.”
“Rain continues to fall in southern Pakistan. High tides in the Arabian Sea and the clay soil in the region mean that flood waters will remain standing for some time to come. Huge areas remain submerged, houses are uninhabitable, and nearly four million people have had to leave their homes in the southern province of Sindh alone.
“Aid needs to get here as quickly as possible to help these people - so the RAF’s support with these flights is invaluable. The DFID shelter kits that they’ve flown in will provide essential shelter for some 3,500 families.”
The RAF and DFID have worked together on three previous flights. On 18 August, a C130 Hercules brought in 11 metric tonnes of plastic sheeting for the United Nations, to be used for emergency shelter. On 14 August, a C17 flew in around 45 metric tonnes of aid, including tents, food and medical supplies for the UN, Islamic Relief and the Qatar charity. And on 08 August, another C17 brought in 500 DFID tents to provide shelter for at least 2,500 people. In addition, four other DFID-chartered commercial flights have brought in essential aid items since the floods began, making a total of seven DFID-funded flights, plus the two scheduled for this weekend.
The British Government has now committed £64 million to help people in Pakistan affected by the floods. This will help millions of people access safe drinking water, toilets, emergency shelter, health care and other essentials.
A summary of the UK Government’s contributions to date can be viewed at: http://www.dfid.gov.uk/Media-Room/News-Stories/2010/Floods-in-Pakistan/
Please contact DFID-Pakistan media team on 051 201 2536.
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