By: Olkeriil Eoghan Ngirudelsang
Airai, Palau – The Palau Red Cross Society opened a new emergency relief supplies warehouse and training center on Wednesday, July 25, 2024, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
The facility, funded by a Japanese government grant, will store non-food items for disaster relief and provide a space for training volunteers. Construction began in January 2022 and was completed in July.
The warehouse will increase the Red Cross’s non-food item storage capacity from 100 to 300 households, the organization said.
Jefferson Thomas, chairman of the Palau Red Cross national governing board, and President Whipps praised the project at the ceremony. Japanese Ambassador Orikasa Hiroyuki also spoke, followed by Red Cross Executive Director Maireng Sengebau.
The Palau Red Cross is an auxiliary of the government focused on disaster preparedness, risk reduction and response. The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, with 191 national societies, has more than 16 million staff and volunteers worldwide.