Taiwan sends 2 air force transport planes of material relief to Philippines typhoon disaster zone
Taiwan’s air force dispatched two C-130 flights carrying emergency supplies to the southern Philippines after a destructive category 5 typhoon left 378 dead, and an estimated 2.4 million people in need of emergency assistance.
The first flight arrived in Cebu yesterday evening, December 25, and a second flight arrived this morning.
Typhoon Rai, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Odette, made landfall on December 16. According to the latest statistics from the Philippine government, the typhoon left 378 dead, 742 injured, 60 missing, and 3.95 million residents affected. Local infrastructure and agricultural losses have exceeded 400 million U.S. dollars.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today that due to the continuous expansion of the disaster situation in the Philippines, the government of Taiwan formed the “Aid to the Philippines Typhoon Rai Task Force.” The Ministry of National Defense coordinated with the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Council of Agriculture, Overseas Chinese Affairs Committee, and other relevant ministries and committees, mobilizing more than 100 staff to urgently raise various disaster relief supplies. The supplies were dispatched by the air force C-130 transport aircraft, which were successfully delivered on the 25th and 26th in 2 sorties.
Materials carried included rations, biscuits, instant noodles, bottled drinking water, tents, and portable water filters. The total weight of the materials is close to 10 metric tons. The National Army C-130 transport aircraft departed from the Air Force’s Pingtung Airport and flew directly to Mactan-Cebu International Airport.
On December 22, Taiwan donated US$500,000 in monetary aid for victims of the typhoon in the Philippines.
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Didn’t even know about this. In the news here (Australia), all we ever hear about is the number of “cases.” It would be interesting to know how much, if anything, the Chicoms gave.