Aid shipment reaches Indonesia

RELIEF SUPPLIES: Malaysia Airports staff helping to unload medical, water, food and clothingsupplies for Banda Aceh from various organisations at the KL International Airport yesterday.

LHOKSEUMAWE: The biggest shipment of humanitarian aid from the Government and people of Malaysia for the tsunami victims in Indonesia arrived at Krueng Geukueh Port here yesterday. 

The Royal Malaysian Navy’s KD Mahawangsa, with 550 tonnes of goods, docked at 5pm (6pm Malaysian time). 

The aid includes dry food (110 tonnes), drinks (245 tonnes), medicines (three tonnes), clothes (20 tonnes), blankets (15,000 pieces), rice (80 tonnes) and sugar (20 tonnes). 

It also includes 31 tonnes of sodium hypochloride, which will be used to control the spread of diseases. 

The navy's public relations officer, Lt Rosdi Mohamad, said the aid would be distributed to the people in the area, 230km north-east of Banda Aceh. 

The ship, under Commander Abdul Hadib Abdul Wahab, left the Klang Port on Wednesday. 

The 4,500-tonne multipurpose command support ship also carried two bulldozers, three backhoes, six three-tonne trucks and three four-wheel drive vehicles, which will be sent to the relief centre at Banda Aceh. – Bernama