International Medical Corps doctors and nurses are providing emergency medical services to those injured by the double truck bombing that rocked the Somali capital on Saturday, October 14. Nearly 300 people were reportedly killed in the deadliest terrorist attack to hit Mogadishu in decades, and the death toll is expected to rise in the days to come.
“We stand with Somali people in the wake of this devastating tragedy,” said Mohamed Abdullahi Ibrahim, International Medical Corps’ country director for Somalia. “Our doctors and nurses are at a Mogadishu hospital, providing lifesaving care to the injured. We are also providing medical supplies we already have in country to hospitals and clinics treating survivors, but more medicines and surgical supplies are urgently needed. We are working to mobilize additional supplies for medical facilities in Mogadishu.”
Within hours of the bombing, International Medical Corps deployed a 14-person Emergency Rapid Response Team—along with critical medicines and medical supplies—to a Mogadishu hospital. The team is helping provide around-the-clock trauma care, including supporting lifesaving surgeries. International Medical Corps is also running an ambulance that is transporting the injured as well as distributing medical supplies to various hospitals in Mogadishu.
International Medical Corps works in four regions of Somalia to provide medical care, treatment for malnutrition, water and sanitation, and other services for Somali families, many of whom have been forced from their homes by drought and conflict. The organization also maintains an emergency standby capacity in country to respond to crises that might flare up. This includes the 14-person team currently responding to Saturday’s terrorist attack.