The British government on Sunday announced in a statement sending more than 600 pieces of emergency medical equipment to India, where contaminations and deaths from the coronavirus epidemic are reaching new heights.
Read also: Covid-19: India becomes the new epicenter of the pandemic
“
Vital medical equipment, including hundreds of oxygen concentrators and respirators, is now on its way from the UK to India,
” said UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, to “
support efforts to prevent tragic loss of human life due to this terrible virus
”. Following discussions with the Indian government, "
the first shipment of equipment will leave the UK on Sunday and is expected to arrive in New Delhi in the early hours of Tuesday morning,
" the statement said.
"
This first delivery of life-saving equipment will provide essential help
" in the face of "
heartbreaking scenes in India,
" said Health Minister Matt Hancock, calling on the governments of different countries to "
unite and win together this terrible disease
”.
Other deliveries should follow during the week, it is specified in the press release.
A total of nine air cargoes containing 495 oxygen concentrators and 140 ventilators will be dispatched.
The health system is cracking
Boris Johnson was originally scheduled to visit the country on Sunday. But this three-day visit was postponed due to the worsening health situation. Earlier today, the EU also pledged to provide “
assistance
” to India, through its European Civil Protection Mechanism. German Chancellor Angela Merkel also announced that her government was preparing to provide emergency aid, without giving details of its content.
India, which has 1.3 billion inhabitants, is in the grip of a new outbreak of contamination by Covid-19. On Sunday, it identified nearly 350,000 cases and 2,767 additional deaths over 24 hours. Its health system is crumbling under the flood of patients, who face a lack of hospital beds, oxygen reserves and life-saving drugs.
