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| © US Fund for UNICEF/2010/Alleyne |
| A British Airways jet sits on tarmac in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, after flying 40 tonnes of aid free from UNICEF's Supply Division in Copenhagen. The relief supplies on board were to be trucked across the border into Haiti. |
This is a running update on the UNICEF Supply response to the earthquake emergency in Haiti. More information on the emergency and UNICEF's response may be found at http://www.unicef.org/
20 January 2010
UNICEF's supply response to haiti aims to address the immediate needs of children and families in shelter, Water and Sanitation, Health, Nutrition, and Child Protection. UNICEF is working closely with other UN agencies and humanitarian organisations to coordinate logistics in Panama, Santo Domingo and Port au Prince.
This first wave of UNICEF's response addresses requirements based on a target population of 250,000. As needs are identified, this number is expected to increase. The Supply Division Emergency Coordination Unit has prepared the attached consolidated list of UNICEF commodities confirmed as sent or enroute.
Summary of departures by air
Wednesday 20th January, 90 MT of emergency supplies left Billund, Denmark for Santo Domingo. The shipment included: tents, tarpaulins, nutrition kits, mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) tapes, weighing scales, health and medical kits (midwifery, diarrhoeal, inter-agency emergency health), essential emergency medicines, family water kits, Early Childhood Development kits, recreation kits, and blankets. This was a UNICEF commercial flight.
Also today, 5.5 MT of water bladders and chlorine tablets left London Gatwick for Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. The freight was a donation by Thomas Cook.
Tomorrow, Thursday, 21st January, 9.2 MT of jerry cans will leave Charles de Gaulle Airport for Santo Domingo. This cargo space is donated by UPS.
On Friday, 22nd January 20 MT of emergency supply items will leave Billund Airport for Santo Domingo. The cargo will include: 662 Early Childhood Education kits. This will be the second donated airlift from Denmark by British Airways.
With support from Air France/KLM, 100 MT of emergency supplies have arrived in Charles de Gaulle Airport today from Copenhagen by truck and will leave Paris for Santo Domingo on Friday, 22 January. Air France/KLM is not applying commercial mark-up for this transportation. Emergency supplies on this plane will include: family water kits, water testing kits, essential medical supplies and medicines, oral rehydration sachets, MUAC tapes, mobile warehouses, tents, tarpaulin sheets, and UNICEF visibility materials.
19th January 2010
Tuesday, 19 January, UNICEF warehouse tents (large storage capacity tents) left Dubai for Santo Domingo on a Royal Emirates Flight. Cargo space was donated by the Sheikh of the Royal Emirates.
Wednesday 20th January, 90 MT of emergency supplies, including tents, tarpaulins, nutrition kits, mid-upper arm circumference tapes, weighing scales, health and medical kits (midwifery, diarrhoeal, inter-agency emergency health), essential emergency medicines, family water kits, Early Childhood Development kits, recreation kits, and blankets, will leave on a UNICEF commercial flight from Billund, Denmark to Santo Domingo
Also on Wednesday, 5.5 MT of water bladders and chlorine tablets will leave in cargo space donated by Thomas Cook Airlines. This flight is a tourist charter that will leave from London Gatwick Airport to Punta Cana.
On Thursday, 21st January, 9.2 MT of jerry cans will leave Charles de Gaulle Airport for Santo Domingo. This cargo space is donated by UPS.
On Friday, 22nd January 20 MT of emergency supply items will leave Billund Airport for Santo Domingo. This will be the second airlift of emergency supplies from Denmark by British Airways. The composition of cargo will be confirmed.
With great support from Air France/KLM, 100 MT of emergency supplies will be trucked from the UNICEF Supply warehouse in Copenhagen to Charles de Gaulle Airport on Wednesday. This cargo will leave Paris for Santo Domingo on Friday, 22 January. The composition of cargo will be confirmed.
In Santo Domingo and Punta Cana, UNICEF is working in coordination with other humanitarian organisations to ensure that essential supplies reach children and families in Haiti.
18 January 2010
With support from UPS, 9 MT of UNICEF emergency supplies will leave Charles de Gaulle Airport for Port au Prince on Tuesday, 19th January. This cargo will include collapsable water storage containers.
Largest airlift to Haiti
UNICEF has scheduled its largest airlift of emergency supplies for Haiti, to date, on Wednesday 20th January. The 90 MT of supplies will be carried on a 747 commercial cargo plane from Billund Airport, Denmark to Santo Domingo. These will include: tents, tarpaulins, nutrition kits, mid-upper arm circumference tape, weighing scales, health and medical kits (midwifery, diarrhoeal, inter-agency emergency health), essential emergency medicines, family water kits, Early Childhood Development kits, and recreation kits,
The same day, in partnership with Thomas Cook Airlines, 5.5 MT of water bladders used for water storage, will leave on donated cargo space from London Gatwick Airport to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic.
On Friday 22nd January,a British Airways 747 on the second Haiti relief mission will land in Billund Airport to take more UNICEF supplies to Santo Domingo. The composition of the cargo and weight will be confirmed.
16 January 2010 - BA donated Jumbo flies UNICEF emergency supplies to Haiti
UNICEF emergency assistance left Billund Denmark tonight on a donated British Airways 747 destined for Santo Domingo. The special relief flight for Haiti was organised in just 24 hours.
Where there’s a will, there’s a way, said Captain Steve Hawkins, one of five pilots volunteering their time to take the flight to Santo Domingo.
BA volunteers
The BA staff response to a call for volunteers was overwhelming, the civil aviation authorities granted the necessary flying permissions very quickly and BA and UNICEF cooperated in record time.
In Billund, 22 volunteer BA engineering crew, airport ground staff, and UNICEF staff worked in sub-zero temperatures to load 40 MT of humanitarian aid. In addition to the cargo area, every conceivable seating and carry-on space in the plane’s cabin was used. Boxes of health kits, and trunks containing Early Childhood Development materials were arranged and buckled up in passenger seats, and padded securely with BA pillows and blankets. Kit components were also stacked inside lavatories and galley coolers.
Peter Lightbody, BA’s Senior Flight Officer and 747 Technical Manager, explained that while his airline has only three 747 cargo planes, it has 57 jumbo jets - the world’s largest fleet of 747s. “This one had just completed routine maintenance and became available...it was a matter of moving and making decisions very quickly to respond to an urgent situation.”
UNICEF Supply Staff travel with the goods
Two UNICEF Supply specialists were on board the 747 to assist in the affected region. Henrik Jensen said UNICEF’s priority once the plane landed in Santo Domingo would be to unload and match up kit components that were now spread around the interior of the aircraft. “It will be a challenge, but it will get done,” he reassured.
With support from the World Food Programme another aircraft is scheduled to leave the United Arab Emirates this weekend with additional emergency supplies from the UNICEF hub in Dubai.
15 January 2010
The second flight of UNICEF supplies from Panama via DHL charter has been replaced with the following:
With great support from UNICEF UK, UNICEF will ship 40 MT of humanitarian supplies in cargo space donated by British Airways. The Boeing 747 will make a special trip to Billund, Denmark (260 km from Copenhagen) on Saturday morning and will be loaded with UNICEF essential emergency supplies, including: tarpaulins, plastic sheets, 7 large tents (72 sq m), Early Childhood Development (ECD) kits, multivitamins, and a range of health and medical kits (e.g. surgical, obstetric, and inter-agency health, and diarrheal disease kits), The aircraft will also carry 10 MT of Oxfam water and sanitation supplies. The plane will land in Santo Domingo where UNICEF will work with partners on the ground to identify the safest means for transportation by road or air to Haiti.
Coordination efforts will be assisted by two UNICEF Supply specialists from Copenhagen who will travel with the BA flight. One will remain in Santo Domingo ant the other will proceed to Port-au-Prince. One of their first tasks will be to set up large storage capacity tents to house incoming supplies.
Plans are still underway this weekend to move 30 MT of emergency supplies from the UNICEF hub in Dubai to the affected region.
14 January 2010 (2nd update)
The first flight of emergency supplies from Panama to Haiti discussed below is now scheduled to leave Panama at 13:00 h (Panama time) today for Port-au-Prince. The transport is possible thanks to support from the Government of Spain.
A cargo of essential emergency supplies, including tarpaulins, water containers, blankets, and health and medical kits arrived in Panama today by ship. These will be prioritised and loaded onto a DHL commercial flight from Panama to Port-au-Prince on Saturday. UNICEF Supply Division has also received generous offers for free cargo space from partners, UPS and British Airways.
Supply Division warehouse in Dubai: UNICEF is collaborating with the World Food Programme to share cargo space on flight that will leave on Saturday carrying: 42 sq m tents (suitable for dispensaries or classrooms), portable storage capacity tents, tarpaulins, plastic sheeting, and recreation kits, The quantities of these items will be confirmed tomorrow, when we have more information on the cargo space available.
The needs assessment in Haiti is difficult, hampered by collapsed buildings and lack of transportation and communication. UNICEF Supply Division is Copenhagen is preparing for the second wave of supplies by mobilising emergency items to replenish stocks in our Panama warehouse and regional office.
The deployment of five supply and logistics experts is confirmed to reinforce UNICEF capacity and coordinate logistical efforts in collaboration with partners on the ground.
14 January 2010
In the response phase of the earthquake emergency in Haiti, the immediate needs of children and families in Health, Water and Sanitation, and shelter, are the first priorities.
UNICEF supplies
The first wave of emergency essential supplies from the UNICEF Regional Office in Panama will leave for Port-au-Prince by air. These emergency supplies include: 10,000 tarpaulins, 4,600 water containers, 5.5 million water purification tablets, 556,000 oral rehydration sachets, 21 GPS receivers, 2 portable warehouses, tents, trauma kits, and water tanks. These supplies can cover 10,000 families.
A boat carrying a shipment of emergency supplies is due to arrive in Panama on 14 January at 22:00 local time, Additionally, a DHL charter is being loaded with 45 MT of supplies which will leave Panama for Port au Prince on Saturday 16 January. These supplies from the UNICEF Panama Office and UNICEF Panama Supply Warehouse include: water testing kits, inter-agency emergency health kits (IEHKs), Early Childhood Development (ECD) kits, School-in-a-Box kits, Recreation kits, water containers, tents, tarpaulins, rope, and water purification tablets. These supplies can cover an additional 20,000 families.Communications systems have been severely disrupted and Supply Division has telecom equipment available for deployment.
A UNICEF supplier of ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) in Santo Domingo has been identified and 13,848 kg of RUTF is ready for dispatch.
Logistic capacity
Air traffic is severely restricted as a result of extensive damage to the airport at Port of Prince. The conditions at the port are being assessed. Roads from Santo Domingo may be the most viable option for the majority of incoming humanitarian supplies.
Human resources
Five Emergency Response Team Supply and Logistics staff are to be deployed from UNICEF Headquarters (New York) and Supply Division (Copenhagen). UNICEF's emergency response is being coordinated from Panama, Port au Prince, and Santo Domingo.
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| © UNICEF/NYHQ2010-0018/LeMoyne |
| On 16 January, workers from the international NGO Oxfam set up a 10,000 litre water bladder provided by UNICEF in the city of Carrefour, near Port-au-Prince. |
