Disaster Relief Materials To China Quake Victims

26 May 2008
3M New Zealand Dispatches Urgent Disaster Relief Materials To Earthquake Victims In China

3M New Zealand has reacted to the urgent need in China by donating much needed medical materials, following the recent earthquake which struck the Sichuan province in China.

The delivery is being stored and packed by CEVA Logistics and Air New Zealand is sending the donations to Shanghai for 3M.

After hearing the news of the earthquake, 3M New Zealand approached the Consulate-General at the People’s Republic of China in Auckland to see how the organisation could assist the relief effort.

“At 3M New Zealand we feel for the people in the stricken areas and will do what we can to support the relief work. We are grateful to CEVA Logistics and Air New Zealand for packaging, storing and transporting the goods to China for 3M,” said Greg Brown, Managing Director of 3M New Zealand.

3M is donating Avagard liquid hand wash, surgical masks and respirators to assist the medical aid already in operation in the area. The first delivery of many pallets departed Saturday (24th) evening, with more arriving in China over the next few days.

Worldwide, 3M is working with the Red Cross Society of China, dispatching 250,000 respirators to Wenchuan, as well as other medical items such as bandages and disinfectants.

The earthquake, which struck on 12th May with a magnitude of 7.9, hit Wenchuan in the Sichuan province. The earthquake has left more than 80,000 dead or missing and is being called China’s worst earthquake in decades.

It has left a further five million people homeless and living in unsanitary conditions. Around 5,000 health workers are in the hundreds of wrecked villages and refuge camps working to protect victims against disease like plague and meningitis.

ENDS

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