US to send 16 more helicopters to flood hit Pak

Karachi, Aug.19 (ANI): The United States would be sending 16 more helicopters to Pakistan to help in the flood relief and rescue operations, a top American official has said.

Talking to reporters on board US aircraft carrier USS Peleliu along with US Consul General William Martin, US Crisis Response Task Force Commander Rear Admiral Sinclair Harris said that more choppers were needed to respond to the calamity.

Admiral Harris said 15 US helicopters were already in service evacuating hundreds of people from flood hit areas.

He described the deluge worse that Hurricane Katrina, which hit the US in 2005, in terms of the scale of destruction.

He said that the US Marines and sailors were doing great job in the flood-affected areas, which had been acknowledged by the local people also.

"They are getting hugs and kisses from affectees in the northern areas in response to their relief efforts," Harris added. (ANI)