Deutsche Post DHL (DPDHL) Group has deployed their Disaster Response Team (DRT) in Kathmandu, Nepal , following the massive 7.8-magnitude earthquake that has claimed thousands of lives to date in addition to those being severely injured. The international aid community is now gearing up to fly in urgently needed goods like technical equipment, water and food. DPDHL Group’s DRT will provide logistics support to help manage the incoming international aid and handle the goods at Tribhuvan Kathmandu International Airport for further distribution by local and international organizations to those in need.

Frank Appel, CEO of Deutsche Post DHL Group, said: “The massive scale of destruction from the Nepal earthquake has hugely crippled infrastructure and damaged roads and local airports, posing a great logistical challenge towards relief efforts. It’s a race against time to rescue those still captured in the debris as well as those in urgent need for critical assistance and amenities like medical help, food and water. The sudden influx of relief goods at Kathmandu airport challenges the local capacities to distribute these goods in a timely manner to reach beneficiaries. This is the specific logistics support that our DHL Disaster Response Team will provide at the airport. Our team comprises highly trained volunteers who provide logistical expertise to help coordinate the relief aid at the airport for further distribution to the victims in the speediest manner possible.”

A team of DRT volunteers consisting out of DHL employees from countries such as Bahrain, Belgium, Dubai, India, Malaysia and Singapore arrived in Kathmandu, Nepal on 27 April and are supported by Gagan Mukhia, country manager of DHL Express Nepal. The team will work with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) to mobilise and coordinate humanitarian relief efforts in Nepal .

Chris Weeks , DHL director for Humanitarian Affairs, said: “In the aftermath of a disaster airports can become bottlenecks that delay the distribution of emergency relief supplies. In these situations, logistics expertise can make a huge difference in coordinating the incoming supplies, and so save lives by ensuring a swift and organized handling of all aid. However, there is a high level of competency and preparedness in Nepal to deal with the aftermath as we had jointly conducted a ‘Get Airports Ready for Disaster’ (GARD) program with local Nepalese authorities and the United Nations Development Program in 2010.”