New Delhi [India], August 31 (ANI): Singapore will send humanitarian supplies and deploy a specialist team of police officers to Nepal following deadly flash floods along the Nepal-China border, Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Monday.
The assistance package was conveyed by Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan during a telephonic conversation with Nepal's Minister for Foreign Affairs Shisir Khanal.
In an official statement, the Singapore MFA stated that during the call, Balakrishnan extended Singapore's condolences over the loss of life and destruction caused by the catastrophic flash floods that hit the nation last week.
He commended the Nepalese government's relief efforts and expressed gratitude for Kathmandu's assistance in searching for missing Singaporeans.
"Minister Balakrishnan informed Minister Khanal that the Singapore Government will be sending humanitarian supplies and personnel to assist Nepal with the ongoing relief efforts," he added.
In response to a request from the Nepal government, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) is deploying a specialist team featuring Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) officers. In addition, Singapore will send physical humanitarian aid comprising supplies from both civilian channels and the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF).
This latest tranche of official assistance comes on top of a USD 100,000 contribution made by the Singapore Government on August 28 toward the Singapore Red Cross (SRC) public fundraising appeal. To date, the SRC has raised approximately S$1 million for relief operations in Nepal.
The MFA added that its Crisis Response Team has been operating on the ground in Nepal since August 27 to provide consular support to affected Singaporeans.
"The Singapore Government will continue to work closely with the Nepal government on the provision of our humanitarian assistance. Minister Khanal expressed Nepal's appreciation for the Singapore Government's assistance," the statement read.
This comes as the total casualties from the catastrophic Rasuwa floods have mounted to 939, while 3,925 people remain missing across disaster-affected zones, according to the official update released by Nepal's National Disaster Risk Reduction & Management Authority (NDRRMA) as of 6:00 PM on Monday.
According to data released by the NDRRMA, body recoveries across districts stand at 279 in Chitwan, including various unidentified human remains, 216 in Nawalparasi East, 168 in Nawalparasi West, 95 in Nuwakot, 65 in Gorkha, 55 in Dhading, 38 in Tanahun, and 23 in Rasuwa.
The authority confirmed that 3,925 individuals are currently untraced, which includes 865 in Rasuwa and 1,558 in Nuwakot as per District Emergency Operations Centre data, 639 at hydropower projects, 592 foreign nationals, 164 Nepali citizens traveling with foreigners, three in Langtang National Park, and three at a quarantine office.
Missing security personnel include 45 from the Nepal Army, 25 from the Nepal Police, 13 from the Armed Police Force, 15 from the Customs Office, and three from the Immigration Office.
Rescue operations have successfully evacuated 11,379 people to date, with the Nepal Army airlifting 3,404 Nepali nationals and 253 foreign citizens across 499 helicopter flights, including 88 sorties executed on August 31 alone, supplemented by 29 private sector flights operating out of Kathmandu, NDRRMA added.
A total of 279 people have been injured, of whom 168 have been discharged after receiving hospital treatment, while medical personnel from the Nepal Army have provided direct treatment to 2,700 individuals.
Ground operations are being spearheaded by 21,008 deployed security personnel, comprising 8,896 members of the Nepal Army, 7,909 from the Nepal Police, and 4,203 from the Armed Police Force.
Relief dispatch efforts have mobilised 37 trucks and 37 Bolero utility vehicles carrying food and essential supplies directly to affected areas, alongside nine helicopter delivery missions. Fuel reserves positioned in impacted areas currently stand at 45,000 litres of diesel, 20,000 litres of petrol, and 9,000 litres of aviation fuel, while telecommunications infrastructure has been largely restored with all 110 damaged Nepal Telecom towers operational and 75 out of 78 damaged Ncell towers back online.
To aid immediate disaster response, the Government of Nepal has disbursed cash support consisting of NPR 10 million each to Rasuwa and Nuwakot, NPR 5 million to Dhading, and NPR 67.5 million distributed among 15 affected local governments, NDRRMA stated. (ANI)
Singapore to dispatch disaster victim identification team and humanitarian aid to assist flood-hit Nepal
