Chinese hospital ship Peace Ark. (China News Service)
Typhoon victims line up for relief aid in Tacloban City in Leyte province in central Philippines. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)
Casualties from super typhoon Haiyan in Tacloban City in Leyte province in central Philippines. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)
LEYTE (Mindanao Examiner / Nov. 25, 2013) – The Chinese hospital ship Peace Ark has arrived in the central Philippine province of Leyte ravaged by super typhoon Haiyan to help victims of the recent calamity.
The 10,000-ton-class hospital ship is equipped with 300 beds and over 100 medical professionals on board and has been put into use in the Philippines, according to Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang.
Doctors on board Peace Ark, together with an emergency medical team sent by the Chinese government and an international rescue team dispatched by the Red Cross Society of China have treated hundreds of patients, Qin said.
Qin said Chinese medical workers will work closely with their Filipino and international counterparts during the rescue process.
The Red Cross Society of China also delivered a new batch of relief supplies worth 5.4 million yuan, including 2,000 tents and drugs, to the Philippine National Red Cross.
The Chinese government donated $100,000 to the Philippine government and provided 10 million Renminbi (P73.2 million) worth of materials, mainly blankets and tents to assist communities devastated by Haiyan.
Chinese Ambassador to Manila Ma Keqing made a special trip to Cebu province to see the medical teams off to the disaster areas. She encouraged all the members to extend the good feelings of the Chinese people to the Philippines by working hard to save lives, thus act as a bridge to the friendship of both peoples.
The Chinese Embassy has been working around to clock to facilitate all the relief efforts. Moreover, it also joined the government’s efforts in donating P1.2 million worth of emergency supplies, including radios, emergency lights and flashlights to Leyte and Samar directly.
The diplomats in the Embassy organized a donation for the Filipino staff who are from the typhoon hit areas.China suffered from the same Super Typhoon as well, which affected 4 million people and has caused huge losses and some casualties.
“The Chinese people are empathetic with the hardships the Philippine people are facing. After Typhoon Yolanda hit the Philippines, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Foreign Minister Wang Yi extended their condolences respectively to Philippine President Aquino and Foreign Minister Del Rosario.”
“The Chinese government and its Red Cross Society delivered $200,000 emergency remittance assistance to the Philippine. The relevant Chinese authorities and Chinese Embassy are following closely the relief operations and will render further assistance to the needs of the Philippine people,” the Embassy said.
Typhoon Haiyan has killed over 5,000 people and injured more than 23,000 more and the toll is expected increase in the coming days or weeks. (With reports from PNA, Xinhua)
20