HELPING IRAN: Aid supplies provided by the Bulgarian Red Cross
and American Red Cross are loaded for airlifting to the quake-hit Iranian town of Bam.
and American Red Cross are loaded for airlifting to the quake-hit Iranian town of Bam.
TWENTY-THREE firefighters from Bulgaria went to Iran for a few days to assist in rescue attempts after a serious earthquake hit the town of Bam on December 26.
Bulgaria was one of the first countries to send assistance, along with the United States, Turkey and other European and Arab states.
The rescue team was formed shortly after the earthquake and departed for Iran on December 27. Lieutenant Colonel Georgi Gatev said the four commissioned and nineteen noncommissioned officers of the National Fire and Emergency Service worked with Polish and Austrian colleagues during the rescue efforts.
The same day joint humanitarian aid from the Bulgarian and American Red Cross was sent to Bam. The aid was sent on January and included 12 000 blankets and covers, and 250 15-person tents. The cargo was sent had an estimated value of $100 000, Hristo Grigorov, chairperson of Bulgarian Red Cross said.
The humanitarian help followed an appeal by the International Federation of the National Societies of Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement in Geneva on December 27.
The aid was handed to representatives of the federation, co-ordinating the international Red Cross movement's work.
Suzanne Savage, head of American Red Cross Regional Delegation South East Europe, said that the size of the aircraft did not allow the whole amount of the aid destined for Iran to be transported at once. The plan was to send 500 tents, 30 000 blankets, 4 900 water containers, and 2225 tarpaulins. The rest of the aid would be transported by sea or road, Savage said.
- Staff Reporter
Bulgaria was one of the first countries to send assistance, along with the United States, Turkey and other European and Arab states.
The rescue team was formed shortly after the earthquake and departed for Iran on December 27. Lieutenant Colonel Georgi Gatev said the four commissioned and nineteen noncommissioned officers of the National Fire and Emergency Service worked with Polish and Austrian colleagues during the rescue efforts.
The same day joint humanitarian aid from the Bulgarian and American Red Cross was sent to Bam. The aid was sent on January and included 12 000 blankets and covers, and 250 15-person tents. The cargo was sent had an estimated value of $100 000, Hristo Grigorov, chairperson of Bulgarian Red Cross said.
The humanitarian help followed an appeal by the International Federation of the National Societies of Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement in Geneva on December 27.
The aid was handed to representatives of the federation, co-ordinating the international Red Cross movement's work.
Suzanne Savage, head of American Red Cross Regional Delegation South East Europe, said that the size of the aircraft did not allow the whole amount of the aid destined for Iran to be transported at once. The plan was to send 500 tents, 30 000 blankets, 4 900 water containers, and 2225 tarpaulins. The rest of the aid would be transported by sea or road, Savage said.
- Staff Reporter
