Manokwari (ANTARA) –
West Papua Vice Governor Muhammad Lakotani welcomed the arrival of hundreds of new oxygen tanks and items of personal protective equipment (PPE) donated by the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) in Rendani Airport Manokwari, Tuesday.
The oxygen tanks and PPE supplies were flown from Halim Perdanakusuma Airport Jakarta on an Indonesian Air Force aircraft, with a stopover in Makassar, South Sulawesi.
“Today, the province officially accept the oxygen tanks and PPE donations from the BNPB, handed over by the Kasuari XVIII Regional Military Chief to the West Papua provincial authority,” Vice Governor Lakotani said.
The BNPB donations fulfilled most demands for oxygen and PPE supplies from local hospitals to treat COVID-19 patients at West Papuan hospitals, he said. “The new supplies would also be distributed to West Papua cities and districts, proportional with their needs,” he added.
Abdul Muhari, Acting Head of Disaster Data, Information, and Communications Centre of the BNPB, in a press statement on Tuesday, stated that the oxygen tanks and PPE supplies for West Papua are to assist the management of the COVID-19 pandemic in the province.
He added that the total 150,000 masks consist of 30,000 medical masks, 15,000 KF-94 masks, 50,000 medical child masks, 5,000 INA fabric masks, and 55,000 fabric masks for children. “Besides new mask supplies, the BNPB is also assisting the province by sending 50 oxygen tanks, 50 oxygen concentrators, 1,000 medical gloves, 1,000 medical T-Well, and 10,000 antigen rapid tests,” Muhari stated.
Based on the West Papua Province COVID-19 Handling Task Force data, the total number of COVID-19 cases is 18,900 positive cases, as of Monday, August 2, which increased by 118 people from the previous day. The positivity rate in the province is 27.6 per cent from all tested populations of 68,408 people.
The recovery rate in the province is 84.4 per cent, with current recovered cases at 16,035 people, an increase of 517 people from the previous day. COVID-19 death cases in the province has reached 290 patients.
Source: Antara News