As large groups of Rohingya refugees continue to flee from Myanmar into neighboring Bangladesh, Samaritan’s Purse is extending our response to care for these desperate people in Jesus’ Name.
On Dec. 10 our DC-8 plane landed in Bangladesh with 15-20 tons of surgical supplies and other medical equipment. The materials will help double the capacity of Memorial Christian Hospital, a facility with which we enjoy a longstanding partnership. The hospital has offered medical services to hundreds of Rohingya refugees suffering from dire injuries and illness.
The plane left Greensboro, North Carolina, on Dec. 7.
Samaritan’s Purse is providing operating room equipment and enough hospital beds to outfit and staff a special recovery ward for Rohingya surgical patients.
Included in this airlift were a portable digital X-ray machine, patient monitors, anesthesia machines, surgical tables, and other support devices. These general medical and surgical supplies will address the increased flow of critically injured patients coming into the hospital and will expand capacity for many more.
Members of our disaster assistance response team (DART), including more than a dozen post-operative nurses, a surgeon, and anesthetist, will help meet the growing need for treatment for the injured and ill among the more than 655,000 Rohingya refugees who have entered Bangladesh since August.
“These are very vulnerable people who need our help,” said DART member David Bock. “What they need most is hope.”
There are many reports that these refugees have been the victims of traffic accidents and of wild animals on their journey. Dehydration and malnutrition among children have also been reported. Others have been injured or fallen ill since arriving at Kutupalong refugee camp on the outskirts of Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh.
Please pray for the Rohingya refugees, especially children who are particularly at-risk during these difficult times. Pray for our teams as they extend physical and spiritual relief in Jesus’ Name.
Note: This story, originally published on Dec. 7, was updated on Dec. 10 to reflect the arrival and unloading of the plane.
Around the world, millions of people are forced from their homes, communities, or countries due to conflict, persecution, natural disaster, disease, or poverty. Your gift enables Samaritan’s Purse to respond to those affected by this increasing international crisis with assistance such as food, water, shelter, hygiene kits, cooking supplies, medical care, and more. We invite you to partner with us as we continue to respond to urgent needs in Jesus’ Name.