Press Releases

August 31, 2005

Germany Prepared to Provide Assistance to US in Wake of Hurricane Katrina

Germany is prepared to provide the United States with technical assistance in coping with the massive devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina. “If there are requests on the part of the Americans, then we will surely participate,” German Interior Minister Otto Schily said on behalf of the German Government in an interview with Reuters TV today.

In general, the United States is well equipped to deal with natural disasters, and the geographic distance across the Atlantic may make it difficult to provide immediate assistance to the affected region along the Gulf Coast. Nevertheless, Schily reiterated Germany’s willingness to help. “We would of course also be prepared to support our American friends through the Federal Agency for Technical Relief.” He assumed, however, that currently there is no need for it as the United States not requested help yet.

The Federal Agency for Technical Relief (Technisches Hilfswerk or THW) provides assistance in disasters in Germany, such as the flooding this summer in Bavaria and the massive flooding in eastern Germany in 2002, as well as abroad as in the region devastated by the 2004 tsunami.

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