ISLAMABAD: The US military initiated airlifting essential flood-relief items to Pakistan to support the populations affected by the catastrophic floods that still keep most of the country under water.
Centcom, in support of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), is working to help Pakistanis in times of need as cataclysmic floods wreaked havoc killing over 1,300 people across the country, US Embassy in Islamabad announced today.
Nearly $2.2 million worth of essential life support resources, including food preparation and shelter materials, will be delivered in approximately 20 different shipments around the country under the relief operations.
The total amount of the flood response to date is $30.1 million, including these airlifted humanitarian supplies, US Embassy said.
A Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) was deployed on September 2 to lead the US government’s response efforts, which the US military response is supporting.
Meanwhile, Administrator Samantha Power announced that the United States, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), is providing an additional $20 million in humanitarian assistance to support the people affected by severe flooding in Pakistan resulting from heavy monsoon rains, as well as landslides and glacial lake outbursts, that have been ongoing since June. The impact of these floods has been felt widely across Pakistan. An estimated 33 million people have been affected, nearly 1,400 have died, and more than 12,700 have been injured. Infrastructure in the flooding’s path has been decimated, with more than 1.7 million homes, an estimated 13.8 million acres of cropland, thousands of miles of road and hundreds of bridges damaged or destroyed.
This support builds on an announcement last week of $30 million in humanitarian assistance to help the people of Pakistan affected by these devastating floods. Since August 12, the United States has provided over $50.1 million in disaster assistance to help the people of Pakistan. With these additional funds, USAID partners will continue to provide emergency relief supplies, multi-purpose cash and shelter assistance, support for livelihoods, logistics, and humanitarian response coordination systems. USAID will also prioritize water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) assistance as a preventative measure to mitigate the anticipated spread of waterborne diseases.
