Off-airport cargo terminal put into use in Chongqing

The first comprehensive off-airport cargo terminal in western China, which integrates international inbound and outbound functions with customs and security screening capabilities, started operation in southwest China’s Chongqing Municipality on Thursday.

Located in the Xiyong Comprehensive Bonded Zone, the terminal is expected to have an annual cargo and mail handling capacity of 50,000 tons, with functional authority and operational standards equivalent to those of the main cargo terminal of Chongqing Jiangbei Airport.

“With this off-airport cargo terminal, international air cargo including high-end industrial products and cross-border e-commerce goods can complete all air logistics procedures, such as customs clearance, inspection, acceptance, and security checks, in one stop within the park. This truly brings airport cargo terminal functions to the factory gates, creating an efficient logistics channel that seamlessly connects the air port with the industrial park,” said Zhao Liang, deputy general manager of the Logistics Management Department of Chongqing Airport Group.

Compared with traditional cargo transportation models, the cargo terminal can help enterprises in the region reduce logistics costs by more than 20 percent and save five to eight hours in customs clearance time.

Its official launch will further expand Jiangbei Airport’s air logistics reach and enhance the overall competitiveness of Chongqing’s air logistics sector.

The United Nations is ramping up humanitarian assistance and coordinating international relief efforts following the devastating earthquakes that struck Venezuela, with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres pledging the world body’s full support for rescue and recovery operations.

Guterres spoke by phone with Venezuela’s acting president Delcy Rodriguez on Thursday night and expressed his solidarity with the people and the government of Venezuela, Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the secretary-general, told a news briefing on Friday.

“The secretary-general last night spoke to the acting President of Venezuela, Delcy Rodriguez. In the call he expressed his solidarity with the people and the government of Venezuela following the devastating earthquakes. The secretary-general pledged the full cooperation of the UN system in support of the government-led relief efforts on the ground,” he said.

Meanwhile, the United Nations and its humanitarian partners are rapidly scaling up the response, conducting assessments and mobilizing assistance, said Dujarric.

“The Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, allocated yesterday 15 million dollars from the Central Emergency Response Fund, all of this to support urgent life-saving assistance, including healthcare, shelter, food and water,” he said.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is supporting coordination efforts on the ground, facilitating information sharing, and working with partners to help ensure the effective deployment of international search-and-rescue teams.

“A total of 30 of these teams are deploying to Venezuela with more than 1,600 personnel, 100 dogs coming from a wide variety of countries,” said Dujarric.

The UN Disaster and Assessment teams have also been mobilized, along with a four-member operational support team. Several OCHA staff are also being deployed to Venezuela.

Meanwhile, the World Food Program (WFP) said that the first 72 hours are crucial for search and rescue, as well as critical for positioning food and other relief supplies that people will need in the coming days.

“WFP says it has enough to feed more than 10,000 families for two months in Venezuela,” said Dujarric.

The WFP teams are looking for the fastest way to mobilize further food assistance and are establishing response priorities across the affected areas, according to Dujarric.

For its part, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said that an estimated 3.9 million children live in the areas affected by the earthquakes, putting thousands of children and their families at even further risk.

UNICEF is on the ground and coordinating closely with national authorities, the broader system, local and international partners to assess needs and support a rapid, effective response.

To enable immediate action, UNICEF has allocated 1.5 million dollars from its internal resources and one million dollars from the Global Humanitarian Thematic Funding, according to the spokesman. Furthermore, rescue forces from around the world can be seen gathering at an airport in Panama, hoping to reach the earthquake-stricken areas and begin rescue operations soon.

The two powerful earthquakes, with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5 and striking just 40 seconds apart late on Wednesday, were the strongest to hit Venezuela in more than a century and the deadliest in decades.

The death toll from the earthquakes had risen to 920, Venezuelan National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said on Friday.

As of midday on Friday, about 50,000 people had remained missing, according to a website established to receive reports of people still unaccounted for.

Also on Friday, Fletcher warned that “it is a massive job to go through the rubble” and the death toll is likely to continue to rise.