OPS JAPAN EARTHQUAKE & TSUNAMI (JET) RELIEF - UPDATE #3
MERCY RELIEF MEETS TSUNAMI SURVIVORS
Having established the necessary supply chain and delivered the first batch of supplies at the designated supply collection centre near Iwate prefecture, Mercy Relief (MR) team today arrived at the devastated coastal towns of Kamaichi City in Iwate where mountains of debris still linger. Iwate is the second worst-hit prefecture after Miyagi.
More than 45,000 people in Iwate have been displaced and are staying at over 350 evacuation centres. The centres are kept very tidy and clean. Amazingly, despite the ongoing crisis, the evacuees remain disciplined in practising waste sorting.
Food is sufficient, but are limited to instant noodles, biscuits and cakes. With Tokyo ordering the suspension of exports of produce such as milk and certain vegetables from the regions around the nuclear plants in Fukushima, the issue of food shortage has become a growing concern. Generally, relief supplies have been delivered in timely and orderly fashion to most evacuation centres except those in more remote areas where access is challenging. Several areas are still cut off from aid due to damaged roads and obstructing debris. Healthcare has been well-addressed as medical personnel from other unaffected prefectures tirelessly conduct daily mobile clinics to serve all the centres.
The MR team walked the Ground Zero at Iwate and witnessed the sheer impact of the tsunami that had washed ashore boats and fishes, and flinging cars onto homes. Many of the survivors shared that they hope life would be back to normal again soon but they bear no such illusions as they realised that that would be almost impossible due to the scale of devastation. Clearing works by the military, to allow for early reconstruction of homes, are making progress albeit slow due to the lack of heavy equipment.
After delivering the second batch of supplies at an Iwate supply centre, the MR team stopped over at another evacuation centre to distribute fun packs comprising toys and activity materials to the children to occupy their time and take their minds off the trauma. In addition, although there was sufficient supply of standard face masks, the team added colour to the children, and smiles to their parents, by providing children face masks decorated with cartoon characters.
MR continues to procure relief items locally from the supply and logistics chain that it has established to address the changing needs on the ground, with the next batch scheduled to be delivered on Tuesday.
For the current relief operations, MR had considered a two-pronged approach to ensure timely and appropriate support in terms of delivery of supplies to the affected areas. This was drawn from its previous responses in complex humanitarian crises especially from the 2004 tsunami in Aceh and the Wenchuan earthquake and Cyclone Nargis of 2008. The first option was to send supplies from Singapore, and the second was to procure supplies from local suppliers in Japan. The decision was to embark on the second option such as to avoid tailbacks at the ports of entry.
MR Chief Executive Hassan Ahmad shared, "Being the conduit of our donors' good intentions, it is critical that we are personally here to understand the relief system and actual operations on the ground for us to be effectively relevant and useful, without which, we would be left with only assumptions which could lead to wastage of resources including time and manpower. Working with the local authorities, NGOs, as well as the business community here, has provided us with the ground intelligence and network to help us with our decisions and operations".
MR is currently serving the affected areas which are a safe distance outside the radiation-hazard zone (officially 30km radius of the nuclear reactors' location). In order to facilitate and ensure the team's safety and quick evacuation, if necessary, a dedicated unit at the MR Headquarters in Singapore is monitoring the radiation alerts and advice from the Japanese Government and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
SUNDAY, 20TH March 2011
OPS JAPAN EARTHQUAKE & TSUNAMI (JET) RELIEF - UPDATE #2
MERCY RELIEF SUPPLIES REACHED AFFECTED LOCATIONS
Mercy Relief's (MR) Team 2 arrived Japan early Saturday morning to combine with Team 1 near Iwate prefecture. The combined team proceeded to dispatch the first batch of relief supplies to the designated supply base for consolidation and sorting by prefectural authorities before being distributed to the evacuees.
Most of the evacuation centres nearer to the cities have been reasonably served, however there remain many places closer to the coast that have yet to be sufficiently addressed, especially those remote areas which have limited access due to broken bridges and damaged roads. With snowfall and sub-zero temperatures, blankets and thermal wear have become top most priority.
The Japanese authorities have started erecting temporary homes for the affectees and these are currently built on open spaces within school compounds. Fresh vegetables have also started to be delivered into the affected areas.
MR continues to procure relief items locally from the supply and logistics chain that it has established to address the changing needs on the ground.
Chief Executive Hassan Ahmad said, "We must all recognised that what we have at hand is a complex humanitarian crisis comprising two natural disasters and a man-made one. The scale of devastation is unimaginably massive, where ideally, the international humanitarian community should come in to support the existing and gallant efforts of the Japanese government. It is as much a test for our Japanese friends as it is for us".
MR is currently serving the affected areas which are a safe distance outside the radiation-hazard zone (officially 30km radius of the nuclear reactors' location). In order to facilitate and ensure the team's safety and quick evacuation, if necessary, a dedicated unit at the MR Headquarters in Singapore is monitoring the radiation alerts and advice from the Japanese Government and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
FRIDAY, 18TH March 2011
OPS JAPAN EARTHQUAKE & TSUNAMI (JET) RELIEF - UPDATE #1
MERCY RELIEF ESTABLISHED LOGISITICS NETWORK, SECOND RELIEF TEAM DEPLOYED
Mercy Relief's (MR) preliminary 2-man team to Japan has established the logistics supply network in the northern part of quake and tsunami-affected areas near Iwate. Operating amidst sub-zero temperatures, the team is now able to procure much-needed relief supplies from several unaffected neighbouring prefectures and transporting them to the various shelter centres holding the survivors who have been evacuated from the disaster affected areas.
MR's initial tranche of relief supplies comprising blankets, water and food, amounts to USD50,000. A second relief team has been deployed today to bolster its aid efforts there.
Working with the local governmental and non-governmental agencies and the business community there, MR's operational objective remains focused towards supporting the stabilization of the ongoing crisis i.e. addressing the essential needs of the affected communities and reducing the risk of exposure to natural elements such as the falling snow and dipping temperatures.
MR is currently serving the affected areas which are a safe distance outside the radiation-hazard zone (officially 30km radius of the nuclear reactors' location). In order to facilitate and ensure the team's safety and quick evacuation, if necessary, a dedicated unit at the MR Headquarters in Singapore is monitoring the radiation alerts and advice from the Japanese Government and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
For more information, please contact
Siti Sayadi/ Selene Ong
+65 94577527/+65 91066108
