A 50-member Chinese health team departed for Myanmar on Saturday to assist with post-disaster epidemic prevention following a 7.9-magnitude earthquake that struck the country in March.
Assembled at Myanmar's request as part of China's expanded humanitarian aid announced on April 10, the team includes 12 members from Beijing and 38 medical experts from Kunming, the capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province.
Equipped with emergency medical supplies and equipment, the team will focus on mitigating disease risks in quake-affected regions.
They will operate primarily in Mandalay, one of the hardest-hit areas, implementing disease prevention and control measures. Their tasks include infectious disease risk assessment, epidemiological surveillance, laboratory testing, environmental disinfection, vector control, drinking water safety inspection, public health education, and technical training for local personnel.
The team includes experts from the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration (NDCPA) and the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
Chen Lei, deputy director of the NDCPA's emergency response department and leader of the mission, said the earthquake severely damaged public health infrastructure, and that extreme heat and torrential rains have exacerbated outbreaks of cholera, measles, dengue fever, and malaria.
The earthquake struck Myanmar on March 28, claiming 3,726 lives and injuring 5,105 people, with 129 others still unaccounted for as of April 18, according to official data cited on Saturday.
China dispatches health team to Myanmar to assist in post-disaster epidemic prevention
