MIAMI — A 14-person, U.S. Air Force medical team, consisting of six doctors, a physician's assistant, a pharmacist and medical technicians, departed Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas, Saturday en route to Ica, Perú, to assist residents affected by an 8.0 magnitude earthquake Aug. 15.
The deployment will increase to 36 U.S. military medical personnel providing assistance to the South American nation.
Earlier today, SOUTHCOM deployed a 30-man mobile surgical team from Joint Task Force-Bravo, based at Soto Cano Air Base in Honduras, to Peru to provide specialized medical care to communities affected by the disaster.
The deployments follow a disaster declaration issued Thursday by U.S. Ambassador to Perú, Peter Michael McKinley, paving the way for U.S. government aid.
In addition to deploying medical assistance teams, U.S. Southern Command is purchasing $50,000 in needed medical supplies to be donated to the Peruvian Ministry of Health to assist the country with its ongoing relief efforts.
Additional updates will be released as new information becomes available.