THE IRISH GOVERNMENT has sent hundreds of tents to the survivors of a devastating typhoon in Philippines which killed at least 1,000 people and left another 1,000 missing.

New Minister of State for Trade and Development Joe Costello said today that the emergency response shipment had arrived at its destination and would provide shelter for those left homeless by Typhoon Washi.

Costello said that 400 tents and 15,000 blankets were airlifted from Ireland’s stock at the UN’s humanitarian depot in Malaysia to Mindanao Island in the southern Philippines last night.

The supplies are being distributed by Plan Ireland, he said, and will provide relief for people suffering in the wake of the storm:

According to the [Philippine] National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, more than 10,000 homes were either destroyed or damaged, leaving more than 350,000 people homeless. This airlift will provide vital shelter to some of these families, who have been enduring difficult conditions over the last two weeks.

Costello also said today that he has put a number of Ireland’s Rapid Response Corps on standby in preparation for deployment to the Philippine islands over the next fortnight to help the international response to the disaster.

The Labour TD was promoted to the junior ministry after his predecessor Jan O’Sullivan was appointed a ‘super-junior’ minister following the resignation of Willie Penrose. Penrose quit the cabinet a month ago in protest at government plans to close an army barracks in his Longford-Westmeath constituency.

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