To provide relief to the earthquake victims in Nepal, Pakistan sent two C-130 aircraft carrying medical staff, relief goods and medicines on Sunday while another four C-130 aircrafts carrying 30 bedded hospital and other relief and rescue items will be dispatched to Nepal on Monday (today), according to Foreign Office and ISPR.
Foreign Office spokesperson Tasnim Aslam in a statement said that as per the directives of Prime Minister, two Pakistani C-130 aircraft had already reached Kathmandu.
She said that the aircraft were carrying medical team of doctors and paramedics, 30-bed hospital, medicines, tents, water, dry food, search and rescue team with equipment with the active collaborative efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Pakistan Army, Pakistan Air Force, National Disaster Management Authority of Pakistan, the Embassies of Pakistan in Kathmandu and Nepal in Islamabad and the Nepalese authorities.
The Ambassador of Pakistan and other Embassy officials were present at Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu to facilitate and extend logistical support to Pakistan relief assistance team, she said.
She said that the embassy had also reached out to the Pakistani expatriate community members to extend them necessary support.
According to her, two more Pakistani C-130 Aircrafts with relief assistance will go to Kathmandu on Monday (today).
Meanwhile, according to ISPR, four C-130 aircraft carrying 30 bedded hospital, special search and rescue teams and relief items will be dispatched to Nepal today (Monday). The aircraft will also carry a 30-bedded hospital comprising Pakistan army doctors team of specialists which include surgical, medical, orthopedic, gynecologist, anesthesiologist, child specialist, radiologist and paramedics.
An urban search and rescue team of Pakistan Army, which is highly specialised for rescue during natural disasters, is being sent, the ISPR said, adding the urban search and rescue team is equipped with ground penetrating radars, concrete cutter.
DG ISPR Major General Asim Bajwa said that the team was specially trained to search people trapped in rubble, adding that it would also carry sniffing dogs. He said that food items being dispatched include 2000 meal ready to eat packs, eatables, water bottles, medicines, 200 tents, 600 blankets and other necessary items. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister has also directed NDMA to render maximum assistance to Nepal for rescue and relief operations following the devastating earthquake. A spokespersons of the authority said that NDMA with the active support of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Army and PAF had co-ordinated the dispatch of relief goods, food items, army medical team and specialist USAR team of Army/NDMA.
The NDMA special search & rescue team in Islamabad has also been put on high alert and standby mode to be sent to Nepal based on assessment.
Being the apex national disaster management authority, NDMA is actively monitoring Pakistan's relief operation in Nepal well in co-ordination with relevant departments to ensure maximum assistance to earthquake-hit people of Nepal.
More than 2,500 people have been killed when 7.9-magnitude earthquake hit east of Nepal on Saturday, which also left thousands others homeless.