Image taken on April 17, 2016 shows a person seriously injured being transferred on board of a plane towards Quito, in Manta, province of Manabi, Ecuador. (Xinhua/Rafael Rodriguez)
"After the earthquake, we are operating at 100 percent to help grant the coverage the country needs," said Francisco Rolayo, Director of the ECU911 Quito Center.
"Our crisis center regroups help at all levels of government, to send food, rescue materials and other necessities while we also coordinate the planes being sent to help in relief efforts, mainly to the province of Manabi," Rolayo told Xinhua.
ECU911 regional centers for the quake-struck areas like Esmeraldas, Portoviejo, Santo Domingo and Machala are also available to provide necessary services, he added.
Meanwhile, the government response continues. In Portoviejo, Manabi's capital, President Rafael Correa met with cabinet ministers on Tuesday to draw up an ongoing response plan. He said searching for survivors and caring for the wounded and displaced remain top priorities.
Some 12,000 food rations will be sent daily to the people affected by the earthquake, the Public Administration's Secretary Pedro Solines announced on Tuesday.
Twenty-six flights will transport food, water, tents and staff to help the earthquake victims in Manabi, the region hardest hit by the disaster, according to Solines.
International organizations and a number of countries have also activated their humanitarian aid plans for Ecuador.
Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a message to President Correa on Monday. In the message, Xi mourned extended condolences to families of the victims and those injured.
China's Red Cross has provided 100,000 U.S. dollars in cash for emergency assistance to its Ecuadoran counterpart, said Hua Chunying, spokesperson of China's Foreign Ministry, on Tuesday.
The Chinese government is also drawing up a humanitarian assistance plan and will provide satellite pictures to Ecuador for relief efforts, Hua said.
In ECU911's headquarters, over twenty Chinese technicians are working day and night to ensure this life-saving system runs well at this critical moment.
"They came to the ECU911 center soon after the earthquake," said Sixto Heras, director of the Resources Coordination Department of ECU911, "and have been working with us side by side. I'm quite moved by their braveness. Thank you, my Chinese friends."
