DHL’s Disaster Response Team has been helping victims of the devastating earthquake that strucksouthern Peru in August, leaving 500 dead and over 1,500 injured. An estimated 200,000 people are
thought to have been made homeless by the catastrophe.The main highway between Lima and the region affected by the earthquake, near Pisco, wasbadly damaged, so up to 20 aircraft per day, loaded with tents, blankets, medicines, food anddrinking water, have been landing at Pisco air base.
DHL’s DRT was deployed to manage the surge in inbound freight sent by national andinternational aid agencies, governments, churches and NGOs.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affaire, it tookthe DHL team five days to stabilise a complex situation by getting hundreds of tons of food,clothes, water, tents, blankets and other supplies onto pallets.
After the initial influx of aircraft, most goods came in by truck: 40ft trailers loose-loadedwith 4,000 boxes of biscuits, 2,500 cases of soya oil and 500 sacks of rice, amongst othersupplies.
The Peruvian Civil Defense Force has now taken over the operation following training by DHLin warehouse and inventory management training, said the UN’s OCHA.
DHL’s three regional DRTs (one each for the Americas and Asia Pacific, with a third oneplanned for Middle East and Africa later this year) provide their services free of charge, eachdrawing on a pool of about 80 DHL employees.
“Sheer manpower and goodwill are making up for the lack of cargo handling equipment,” saidChris Weeks, director of humanitarian affairs at DHL, from the Peruvian scene.
“The DRT is busy reorganising the two temporary warehouses at Pisco Air Force Base so thatmore goods can be stored under cover and shipped out more quickly.”
