Emergency relief sent to quake-hit Vanuatu

China has delivered a batch of emergency relief supplies to Vanuatu, to meet the needs of those affected by a 7.3-magnitude earthquake that hit the southwestern Pacific island country on Dec 17.

A chartered plane sent by the Chinese government carrying 35 metric tons of supplies, including tents, folding beds, solar-powered lights, food, water purifiers and medical equipment, arrived in Vanuatu's capital Port Vila on Thursday.

The supplies were provided at the request of the government of Vanuatu and reflected the friendship of the Chinese people toward the people of Vanuatu, said Li Ming, spokesman for the China International Development Cooperation Agency.

Li Minggang, the Chinese ambassador to Vanuatu, said at the handover ceremony on Thursday that as a good friend and brother of Vanuatu, China feels for the great loss caused by the recent quake.

China is willing to continue providing assistance within its capacity for post-disaster reconstruction in Vanuatu, Li said.

Vanuatu's caretaker Prime Minister Charlot Salwai expressed appreciation for China's assistance at the ceremony, saying that the Vanuatu government will ensure that the aid reaches those affected by the quake as soon as possible.

The tremor that hit Port Vila killed at least 14 people and injured more than 200, with the city's infrastructure severely damaged.

After the earthquake, China immediately provided emergency humanitarian assistance to better support Vanuatu's disaster relief work, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told a daily news conference on Thursday.

Post-disaster assessment engineers from China have been carrying out intensive work in Vanuatu, providing support to the local government and people, she said.

At the request of the government of Vanuatu, four Chinese earthquake engineering experts arrived in Port Vila on Monday — the first post-disaster assessment team that China has sent to a Pacific island country.

Mao said that China believes the people of Vanuatu will overcome the difficulties and rebuild their homes soon.