Taiwan Red Cross to donate US$50,000 to earthquake-hit Myanmar

Taipei, March 30 (CNA) The Red Cross Society of the Republic of China (Taiwan) said Sunday it will donate US$50,000 to help support Myanmar in the aftermath of Friday's magnitude 7.7 earthquake as other local groups were also planning assistance.

The Taiwan Red Cross said in a statement that the funds will go toward supporting emergency aid and rescue efforts by its counterpart in Myanmar and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).

The magnitude 7.7 earthquake and aftershocks have affected Myanmar's capital Naypyidaw, and the central regions of Mandalay, Sagaing, Magway, Bago and the Northeastern Shan State, the Taiwan Red Cross said.

The earthquake also affected China and Thailand, and the IFRC held an online meeting with members across the humanitarian network to discuss emergency response efforts on Saturday, the Taiwan Red Cross said.

Among the concerns was that Myanmar's earthquake-hit regions face the risk of diseases spreading due to damage to infrastructure, including hospitals and the water system, it said.

The Myanmar Red Cross has estimated that around 50,000 families have been impacted by the earthquake, and it planned to offer emergency aid and assistance with rebuilding efforts to 10,000-20,000 families.

According to the Taiwan Red Cross, the IFRC issued an appeal to raise 15 million Swiss Francs (US$17.03 million), with 30 percent of the aid money planned for disaster relief and 70 percent for reconstruction.

Meanwhile, Fo Guang Shan Monastery's regional branch covering Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and India planned to buy 140,000 Malaysian ringgit (US$31,553.6) worth of supplies to help 1,000 families in towns near Mandalay, the second largest city in Myanmar, the Buddhist group said in a statement Sunday.

Fo Guang Shan headquarters will also set aside US$30,000 for disaster relief, while the regional branch will organize transportation between Yangon and central Myanmar for search and rescue teams from Taiwan, it said.

Taipei-based Buddhist group Dharma Drum Mountain said in an online statement Sunday that its charity foundation will send a delegation to the disaster-hit regions in Myanmar to evaluate their needs.

It plans to deliver aid and supplies through Taiwanese businesses that operate in Myanmar, but is also planning emergency shipments of medical and other supplies after Taiwanese carrier China Airlines said Saturday that it will ship disaster relief supplies to Thailand and Myanmar free of charge.

In its latest tallies on the toll of earthquake issued Sunday, the government of Myanmar reported around 1,700 people dead, 3,400 injured and over 300 missing in the disaster, but those numbers are expected to rise much higher in the coming weeks.