von WASHINGTON, Oct. 28, 2010 — The U.S. military has reached a milestone in providing relief to Pakistani flood victims, a Defense Department spokesman said today.
As of yesterday, the military had delivered more than 20 million pounds of relief supplies since the relief effort began Aug. 5, Marine Corps Col. David Lapan told reporters.
Pakistan still is struggling in the aftermath of torrential summer rains that caused flooding that affected some 20 million people, and killed at least 1,800, officials said. The United States has been the first and foremost nation to provide assistance to the flood victims, providing more than $390 million in immediate relief and recovery efforts, and that effort continues, Lapan said.
About 600 U.S. servicemembers are on the ground in flood-ravaged areas, and 26 military helicopters continue to assist in the effort, he said. While the military no longer is providing fixed-wing aircraft support, he added, the continuation of rotary-wing support “shows that there still is a need.”
Source:
U.S. Department of Defense
Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs)
