UN assisting Chile in aftermath of massive quake

(March,02,2010): Authorities in Chile, suffering untold difficulties after Saturday’s 8.8 magnitude earthquake, have issued a request for supplies, including mobile bridges, satellite telephones, electric generators, water purification systems and dialysis centres. The UN is sending dozens of satellite telephones to Chile from New York and Geneva, said Alicia Barcena, Executive-Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), which is headquartered in the capital, Santiago. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) has offered 30 tons of food support, which is ready to be transported to Chile from nearby Ecuador. Countries such as Argentina are sending in urgently-needed field hospitals, with the Chilean Air Force having already setting up four field hospitals, each holding up to 60 patients.
The UN World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Monday, that the quake has severely disrupted health services, and has dispatched a disaster management expert to the South American nation to assist in the aftermath of the catastrophe. Chilean infrastructure has been severely impacted, with some 500,000 homes having been seriously damaged.
The head of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on Monday said that the agency is prepared to assist Chile recover from the massive quake, underscoring the need for countries in high-risk areas to bolster their disaster risk reduction capacity. “The earthquake that struck Chile is another distressing example of our vulnerability to natural disasters and the need for greater vigilance and preparedness,” said UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova.
For its part, the World Bank has also extended its support to Chile to in the aftermath of the earthquake. “Our thoughts are with the people of Chile at this difficult time,” said World Bank Group President Robert B. Zoellick.