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Stamford, Conn. – Aug. 14, 2013 – AmeriCares is sending more emergency medical aid for families fleeing the violence in Syria. A steady stream of Syrians crossing the border has made the Za’atri refugee camp Jordan’s fifth largest city with nearly 130,000 residents. Overcrowding in the camp and mounting challenges in providing basic needs like clean water and health care has heightened risks of water-related and communicable disease outbreaks. With Syrian refugees flowing into Jordan at a rate of 1,000 a day, AmeriCares aid will help our local partners provide health care services for the swelling population. Nearly two million Syrians – including pregnant women, children and civilians injured in the fighting – have sought refuge in neighboring countries since the conflict began in 2011.
“A sustained effort by the humanitarian community is required to prevent outbreaks of epidemic diseases and reduce morbidity at refugee camps like Za’atri,” said AmeriCares Emergency Response Manager Karl Erdmann, who recently visited the camp to assess needs. “These families have already suffered enough as a result of this horrific conflict so it’s critical that we continue delivering medicines and relief supplies to help meet their basic health needs.”
The latest shipment includes nearly 17,000 pounds of antibiotics, cardiovascular medications, pain relievers, intravenous fluids and other medicines. It is the global health and disaster relief organization’s fifth emergency shipment to Jordan since 2012.
Earlier this summer, AmeriCares rushed 28,000 bags of intravenous fluids to our partners working in Syria to prevent a shortage that would have hindered medical professionals’ ability to perform surgeries or administer lifesaving antibiotics to the wounded. AmeriCares has also supplied more than $1 million in medical aid to physicians going on relief missions to help those directly affected by the conflict. In all, AmeriCares has delivered more than $3.3 million in medical aid for the crisis.
“With no end in sight to the unrelenting violence, our Emergency Response Team will continue to provide assistance to help refugees and others affected by the crisis,” Erdmann said.
AmeriCares has been delivering critically needed medicines and relief supplies to the Middle East for more than 25 years in response to civil conflict as well as humanitarian crises.
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