PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh non-profit Brother’s Brother Foundation is gearing up to provide disaster relief to those impacted by the massive earthquake that hit Myanmar.
A 7.7 magnitude earthquake rocked Mandalay, Myanmar, on Friday, bringing down hundreds of buildings, including the control tower at the Naypyitaw International Airport and warping roads.
The death toll is now at more than 2,000 people and it is expected to climb. Thousands were hurt and hundreds are still missing.
BBF said it’s conducting initial needs assessments and has reached out to partners to evaluate how they can most effectively support those affected.
“Given the scope of what’s going on, our goal is to essentially immediately provide some sort of relief to people who no longer have a house, a home or anywhere to go to,” said BBF President Ozzy Samad.
Samad said they are helping in three different ways. First, they will provide basic immediate needs with hygiene kits and blankets. Next, they’ll provide medical supplies and equipment like walkers and crutches. Finally, they will assist those helping with recovery efforts by providing hard hats and other safety equipment.
Tanner Rowe, BBF’s Director of Operations, says they have many pallets to ship out.
“A typical pallet has over 1,000 kits on it, and we usually send a couple pallets each to each location so there are a lot of options to be passed out,” Rowe said.
Samad said it is always a challenge to transport material, but in this case, another challenge will be actually getting the supplies to the people who need them once they arrive in Myanmar.
“The other challenge is what we see on the ground,” said Samad. “There’s been essentially a civil war of sorts going on for a while, so just being able to get the supplies and equipment on the ground to get it distributed to those in need.”
BBF is still waiting to hear more about essential needs in the region.
“100% of what you donate goes to helping those in need,” said Samad. “And they should know whether it’s in Pittsburgh or West Virginia or Florida anywhere we are there to help and that’s what we’re doing.”
Credit card donations can be made at: www.brothersbrother.org by clicking on DONATIONS & choosing International Disasters in the dropdown menu.
Checks should be made payable to Brother’s Brother Foundation and sent to the address below. Please note International Disasters in the memo field.
Brother’s Brother Foundation
P.O. Box 645934Pittsburgh, PA 15264-5257
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