World Vision Tsunami Update 4 January

Tue, 4 Jan 2005

With aid equipment and vehicles urgently needed in the tsunami-stricken countries, World Vision is preparing eight relief airlifts over the next few days. Sri Lanka: World Vision is preparing a number of airlifts into the country from Dubai, Brindisi and Nairobi, comprising generators, tarpaulins, team support equipment and vehicles.

Indonesia: World Vision is procuring and distributing non-food relief aid for thousands of families in the Banda Aceh area. The relief goods include tarpaulins, cooking utensils, buckets, sarongs, soaps, masks and mosquito nets.

The aid agency is also distributing non-food packages to 1,000 families in Medan, the capital of North Sumatera, and in Aceh. World Vision is also shipping vehicles to support the relief operations to the restricted area. Transport has been the biggest problem hampering relief distribution in

Aceh. There are tonnes of relief goods accumulating in Jakarta waiting to be transported to Aceh, but the tiny airport of Aceh is having difficulty accommodating the number of flights. Two flights are expected from World Vision's warehouse in Canada.

India: New Zealander Judy Moore flies into Chennai today to help with relief efforts there. Ms Moore flies in from Sudan where she's been working with World Vision in relief camps for thousands displaced by attacks from the Janjaweed.

Other recent relief positions for Ms Moore in 2004 were in Iran and Iraq, and prior to that, Albania and Kosovo. Ms Moore is the second Kiwi to be sent by World Vision to the tsunami-affected country. Alex Snary left NZ a few days ago to help in the ravaged Andaman Islands, and is in Bangkok awaiting an Indian visa. Already he has arranged for a plane load of aid for the Andaman Islands.

ENDS

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