U.S. military arrives in Aceh to help aid delivery<\/p>\n
Agencies, Banda Aceh\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
The U.S. military arrived in force in Indonesia's tsunami-
\ndevastated Aceh province on New Year's Day as relief efforts to
\ndeliver critically needed aid to stranded survivors prepared to
\naccelerate.<\/p>\n
Five U.S. Sea Hawk helicopters arrived at the airport at the
\nprovincial capital Banda Aceh to begin distributing aid and
\nmedical supplies to the nearly 110,000 made homeless by Sunday's
\nmassive earthquake and the powerful tsunami it triggered.<\/p>\n
The helicopters, some of which had been gutted to make room
\nfor cargo and people, came from the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft
\ncarrier group, anchored about 20 kilometers offshore, and will
\nhelp clear the aid supply-line bottleneck.<\/p>\n
Food, water and critical medical supplies began pouring into
\nthe Banda Aceh airport on Friday, but could not be moved quickly
\nenough and began to stack up.<\/p>\n
\"We are taking supplies out of Banda Aceh and down to
\nMeulaboh,\" Capt Larry Burt, commander of Carrier Air Wing Two,
\ntold Reuters in an interview.<\/p>\n
\"We're here to help and we're going to keep working until the
\nmission is done ... We will send them to where we are told to
\nsend them. Where they say they need (aid), we will move it.\"<\/p>\n
Hundreds of tsunami-survivors have gathered at the airport,
\ncaptivated by the hive of activity created by the Sea Hawk
\nhelicopters, Singaporean military Super Puma helicopters and
\nAustralian and Indonesian C130 Hercules planes.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile in Jakarta, U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia B. Lynn
\nPascoe said on Saturday that the U.S. relief program had also 80
\ntrucks at its disposal to distribute aid within and around Banda
\nAceh.<\/p>\n
\"They are hired by the U.S. government for a month and could
\nbe extended if needs be,\" Pascoe told a press briefing before
\nseeing off an Aceh-bound relief team from Halim Perdana Kusumah
\nair base.<\/p>\n
President George W. Bush has announced a 10-fold increase in
\nthe U.S. commitment to the relief effort for victims in Asian
\ncountries hit by the tsunamis from US$35 million to $350 million.<\/p>\n
Of eight countries badly affected by the tsunamis, Indonesia,
\nthe worst hit, will likely get a substantial portion of the $350
\nmillion assistance.<\/p>\n
To date the U.S. government has pledged nearly $15 million in
\ndirect humanitarian assistance to Indonesia in addition to
\nmilitary assistance and support.<\/p>\n
U.S. Secretary of State Collin Powell is expected to arrive
\nhere next week to lead a fact-finding delegation that would
\ndecide on the country's future relief programs for Indonesia. He
\nwill be accompanied by Florida Governor Jeb Bush, the President's
\nbrother, who has experience in mitigating natural disasters.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/us-military-arrives-in-aceh-to-help-aid-delivery-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}