PDA

View Full Version : Afghan and Coalition doctors provide medical care for Kunar residents



thedrifter
05-08-06, 09:56 AM
Afghan and Coalition doctors provide medical care for Kunar residents
PakTribune.com, Pakistan

KUNAR: Afghan doctors and medics, along with Coalition members, moved into the Korengal Valley of eastern Afghanistan April 21 to provide medical assistance to more than 3,100 Afghans as part of Operation Lion’s Pride.

The movement, located near the village of Arawara Bandeh , was a combined air drop and medical assistance program scheduled to end today. The program provided cost-free treatment to people of the Kunar Province .

Many Afghans in this mountainous and rural northeastern province have only sporadic access to health care. Medical doctors and specialists from Task Force Lava and Coalition forces were providing the care.

Task force officials received a joint movement request from the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marines to air drop 24 containerized delivery systems in the Korengal Valley , according to Army Maj. Matthew Schwind, TFL support operations officer.

"The drop was scheduled for one-day -- however, the weather became a factor and we adjusted this requirement over a two-day span," he said. "We delivered 12 CDS on the first day and 12 on the second day. Humanitarian assistance packages were also brought into the area by Afghan drivers.

"The local residents were notified by Asadabad Provincial Reconstruction Team members of the air drop and follow on medical care being provided to the community," said Marine Capt. Timothy Kelly, 1/3 Marines judge advocate, who is responsible for contracting and payments during the operation.

"This project started with the initial planning of the palletized air drops," Kelly said. "We hired local Afghans from the surrounding communities to help setup the drop zone by painting the DZ with the letter "A" on the ground and we waited for the supplies to be dropped.

"Local Afghans were hired to climb the hills and carry the supplies down into the villages for distribution," he added.

The movement was a joint effort by the Marines, Army and Air Force to get critical supplies including food, bottled water, medical supplies and clothes to people who need assistance, according to Kelly.

"These events allow us to make a solid connection with the local population in order to gain their support and keep this area from reverting back to a terrorist haven," he said.

This effort was an element of Operation Mountain Lion, part of the Coalition’s ongoing offensive operations, which aim to establish enduring security for the people of Afghanistan.

Ellie