ID :
84527
Wed, 10/14/2009 - 22:11
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/84527
The shortlink copeid
US FIELD HOSPITAL IN PADANG ENDS MISSION
Padang, W Sumatra, Oct 14 (ANTARA) - A US field hopsital and its staff ended their humanitarian misssion in quake-devastated Padang on Wednesday after operating for one week following the magnitude-7.9 earthquake on September 30.
"We have ended our mission because this hospital was designed only for a one-week mission. Besides, we have used up most of our medicinal supplies," Colonel Settergren, commander of the field hospital team, said here on Wednesday.
The US field hospital was set up on a plot of land belonging to state railway company PJKA in Sawahan Timur subdistrict, eastern part of Padang on Tuesday (Oct 6).
The devastating quake which rocked West Sumatra province on Wednesday (Sept.30) killed at least 1,115 people.
Settergren said, the American Field Hospital was the only US facility to serve the needs of disaster victims in the Pacific region and based in Guam island.
During its week in Padang, the American field hospital had helped over 2,000 residents of Padang, he said, adding that those who sought treatment were not only victims of the earthquake but also those who suffered from chronic illness.
"On the first day of our service, 50 percent of patients who came here were victims of the earthquake and another 50 percent those suffering from chronic diseases. But after that, many patients who suffered from chronic illnesses sought treatment here," said Settergren.
He thanked Padang residents who had received the hospital and its staff so well, adding the staff had not met with any obstacle worth mentioning during their stay in Padang.
"Our only obstacles was in transporting goods and equipment from the airport to the hospital because there are so many sewers here," he said.
Meanwhile, service coordinator of M Djamil Hospital, Asril Zahari, expressed gratitude for services given by the US field hospital to Padang's community.
"Actually, we still need the American Field Hospital," he said.
In the meantime, US vice consul based in Medan, Michael R Rousek, said the termination of the US field hospital's mission in Padang did not mean the end of US assistance for the earthquake victims.
***3***
"We have ended our mission because this hospital was designed only for a one-week mission. Besides, we have used up most of our medicinal supplies," Colonel Settergren, commander of the field hospital team, said here on Wednesday.
The US field hospital was set up on a plot of land belonging to state railway company PJKA in Sawahan Timur subdistrict, eastern part of Padang on Tuesday (Oct 6).
The devastating quake which rocked West Sumatra province on Wednesday (Sept.30) killed at least 1,115 people.
Settergren said, the American Field Hospital was the only US facility to serve the needs of disaster victims in the Pacific region and based in Guam island.
During its week in Padang, the American field hospital had helped over 2,000 residents of Padang, he said, adding that those who sought treatment were not only victims of the earthquake but also those who suffered from chronic illness.
"On the first day of our service, 50 percent of patients who came here were victims of the earthquake and another 50 percent those suffering from chronic diseases. But after that, many patients who suffered from chronic illnesses sought treatment here," said Settergren.
He thanked Padang residents who had received the hospital and its staff so well, adding the staff had not met with any obstacle worth mentioning during their stay in Padang.
"Our only obstacles was in transporting goods and equipment from the airport to the hospital because there are so many sewers here," he said.
Meanwhile, service coordinator of M Djamil Hospital, Asril Zahari, expressed gratitude for services given by the US field hospital to Padang's community.
"Actually, we still need the American Field Hospital," he said.
In the meantime, US vice consul based in Medan, Michael R Rousek, said the termination of the US field hospital's mission in Padang did not mean the end of US assistance for the earthquake victims.
***3***
