Deutsche Post DHL and UNDP celebrate five years of providing disaster relief plan for airports

Deutsche Post DHL and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) are due to celebrate five years of its joint partnership which has seen both companies provide a scheme for selected airports in disaster prone areas. The scheme sees Deutsche Post DHL and UNDP join together in providing training and special attention to the airports to help them prepare for disaster incidents. The “Get Ready for Disaster” (GARD) programme is currently working within 25 airports, helping them cope with the challenges faced with a humanitarian crisis which has been caused by disaster.

During the time of a natural disaster, airports become a central hub and gateway for aid supplies with the intent of reaching disaster victims quickly. This time also sees an increase in passengers; relatives travelling to support their families, in addition to communities sending relief supplies and media bodies arriving to gain coverage. If left improperly managed, problems can arise resulting in the distribution of relief becoming affected. The GARD plan offers highly efficient and practical contingencies for the handling of international relief goods and humanitarian personnel in the wake of a disaster. The plan also takes into consideration the implications of extensive damage to an airport’s infrastructure, including the loss of staff and capacity due to earthquakes, floods, hurricanes or tsunamis.

Marta Ruedas, Deputy Director of the UNDP’s Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery has said: “In the last 20 years, disasters have affected at least 5 billion people; give the impact it is crucial that we prevent unnecessary deaths by being as prepared as possible, and this is precisely what GARD does with airports.”

Additionally to this, Christof Ehrhard, Executive Vice President of Corporate Communications and Responsibility at Deutsche Post DHL has commented: “Due to the deployment of our so-called “Disaster Response Teams” we have many years of experience in handling these terrible events. The work these teams have done at airports in crisis zones has permitted us to experience first-hand the importance of comprehensive prevention.”