(PORTLAND, ORE. - July 5, 2007) Medical Teams International is working with partners on the ground in Pakistan to help thousands of families stranded by Cyclone Yemyin.

Flooding from the June 26 storm has displaced 250,000 Pakistanis and affected an additional 1.5 million people in the southern province of Balochistan. Initial reports list the death toll at 300. As the deadly flooding recedes, relief efforts have now shifted to caring for families without shelter, food or clean water.

Medical Teams International, as a member of the Global Relief Alliance, is partnering with the Interfaith League Against Poverty in Pakistan to distribute hygiene kits and jerry cans to 25,000 people in the Turbat District. Hygiene kits include soap, wash cloths, towels, toothbrushes/toothpaste and toilet paper. Jerry cans contain five gallons of clean water. Other alliance partners will address food and housing needs.

"The major challenge right now is to stabilize families who are homeless," says Joe DiCarlo, director of emergency relief at Medical Teams International. "It's critical to halt the spread of communicable diseases—illnesses caused by drinking contaminated water, cuts becoming full-blown infections, and lack of sanitation triggering serious respiratory and gastrointestional problems."

Medical Teams International also responded to the Pakistan earthquake in October 2005, sending more than $2.5 million in medical supplies and volunteer medical teams to that disaster.

To contribute to the Pakistan Cyclone Disaster Fund, please call 1-800-959-8325, give online at our secure Web site: www.medicalteams.org or mail gifts to PO Box 10, Portland, OR 97207. Donations can also be made at any US Bank office.