U.S. Response to the Leyte Landslide

The United States Government has provided over $246,000 in relief supplies and funds to help the Philippines respond to this disaster.

The U.S. Agency for International Development’s Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) has provided $100,000 in grant funds to the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC) for immediate relief needs. USAID has airlifted to the Philippines relief commodities from OFDA stockpiles in Miami and Dubai. These commodities include blankets, plastic sheeting, water containers, and body bags. An OFDA Disaster Assistance Expert based in Bangkok traveled to Leyte and is coordinating assistance efforts on the ground with Philippine and U.S. officials.

The Philippine National Red Cross is also distributing protective masks for rescue workers, plastic sheeting, and body bags donated by the U.S. Government in response to previous disasters.

The USS Essex, the USS Harper’s Ferry and the USS Curtis Wilbur are on station off the coast of Leyte, and 1,630 Marines and 16 helicopters from the Marine Expeditionary Unit are engaged in search and recovery operations for the landslide victims. The USS Essex and the USS Harper’s Ferry are multi-mission amphibious ships carrying helicopters and transporting extensive rescue and relief equipment, as well as food and medical supplies.