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U.S. military aircraft deliver more than 20 million pounds of flood relief

By U.S. Embassy, Islamabad, Pakistan

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U.S. Navy sailors help Pakistani Soldiers load relief supplies on a Navy Sea Dragon during humanitarian relief efforts in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province, Pakistan. (Photo by Capt. Paul Duncan)

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (Oct. 28, 2010) — U.S. military aircraft and personnel supporting Pakistan's flood relief efforts achieved a significant milestone October 27, exceeding 20 million pounds of relief supplies delivered since Aug. 5, when U.S. military relief flight operations in Pakistan began.

"This new milestone represents a tremendous amount of teamwork between Pakistan and U.S. flood relief workers. Thanks to the amazing partnership and support we've experienced from the Pakistan military, we've been able to establish a hub-and-spoke system of humanitarian airlift, delivering desperately needed supplies into isolated, flood-torn communities in the north and south," said Vice Adm. Mike LeFever, U.S. Defense Representative to Pakistan.

To date, U.S. military aircraft and personnel, working in close coordination with the Pakistan military, delivered 20,026,620 pounds or 9,083,922.3 kilograms of relief supplies and provided humanitarian airlift for more than 26,000 people in the flood-affected regions of Pakistan.

There are currently 26 U.S. military helicopters and approximately 600 service members in northern and southern Pakistan supporting the Government of Pakistan’s flood relief efforts.

In addition to humanitarian airlift, the U.S. Government is providing more than $398 million to assist Pakistan with relief and recovery efforts, while USAID and other U.S. civilian agencies continue to provide assistance to flood victims.

According to Pakistan's National Disaster Management Authority, the catastrophic floods of the 2010 monsoon season exceed the magnitude of all recent disasters there in terms of the size of the affected population and widespread damage. The most recent figures from NDMA cite the number of total affected population in excess of 20 million, with 1.9 million houses damaged or destroyed and an estimated 1,900 deaths.