MOSCOW, November 10 (Itar-Tass) - Russia’s Emergencies Ministry (EMERCOM) is ready to send a rescue team and a mobile hospital to the Philippines to provide assistance to the country in coping with typhoon aftermath.
“Emergencies Minister Vladimir Puchkov has given instructions to alert the ministry’s forces and means for the humanitarian response in the wake of the devastating Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines,” EMERCOM spokeswoman Irina Rossius told Itar-Tass.
According to her, the 179th rescue centre from Noginsk outside Moscow that will provide transport vehicles, and a loading crew of 20 people, a mobile hospital of the Centrospas mobile rescue squad and international class rescuers of the Lider Centre.
“Two planes will fly to the Philippines, if necessary, and the response group will be increased to 50 people,” said Rossius.
“At present, the assistance issues are being considered the EMERCOM National Crisis Management Centre Emergency with relevant services,” she said.
More than 1.2 thousand inhabitants of the Philippine island of Leyte have fallen victim to Typhoon Haiyan, said officials of the Philippine Red Cross, who visited the affected areas. According to them, the death toll from the natural disaster could reach 5 thousand people.
The typhoon, causing numerous floods and landslides, has virtually destroyed the coastal city of Tacloban with a population of 220 thousand on Leyte Island in the central part of the country. The main highways have also been damaged, as a result of which Tacloban has been isolated.
According to representatives of the Red Cross, at least 200 people were killed in the calamity in the eastern Philippine island of Samar.
In total, more than 1 million people have been evacuated in the Philippines in view of the approach of Typhoon Haiyan, more than 14 million people in 37 provinces were warned of a possible evacuation.
Haiyan is currently moving northwest. After the Philippines, it is expected to hit Vietnam and Laos.