U.S. military team concludes humanitarian mission in Sri Lanka

United States service members who arrived in Sri Lanka along with the representatives of Mongolia, and the Maldives concluded Operation Pacific Angel-Sri Lanka a six-day combined medical and engineering training mission with the Sri Lankan government.

The Pacific Angel team along with the military and civilian representatives of the Sri Lankan government completed a number of medical and engineering missions at various sites in and around Anuradhapura and Puttalam.
A pres statement issued by the U.S. Embassy in Colombo said today that the Pacific Angel teams repaired and refurbished two primary schools, improving the educational environment for nearly 200 students.
In addition, the U.S. forces also partnered with the mayor of Puttalam to provide a power generator, lighting, and three new computers to the Semmandaluwa Kanishta Vidyalaya in Puttalam Township.
A separate team at the Mahasiyambalagaskada Vidyalaya in Neriyakulam has found an old school bell and the members restored it and hung it by the school door, the release said.

(Operation Pacific Angel-Sri Lanka participants from the U.S., Sri Lanka, Mongolia, and the Maldives during the Pacific Angel closing ceremony at the Mahasiyambalagaskada Vidyalaya School in Neriyakulam, Sri Lanka, Aug. 22, 2010.)
According to the Embassy, Pacific Angel medical teams saw and treated 4,647 patients at three sites, and dispensed 4,462 prescriptions. Included in that overall total were 1,662 optometry patients and 562 dental patients. The Pacific Angel optometrists provided 1,448 pairs of eyeglasses, and the dentists performed 78 extractions.
Also included in the program were two medical educational programs which offered U.S. and Sri Lankan professionals the opportunity to exchange information and practice advanced skills related to mental health and pediatric emergencies.
Following the completion of treatment at the sites, Pacific Angel members signed over the remaining medical supplies to the U.S. Embassy, which will donate them to the Cheddikulam Hospital and Puttalam Township, the Embassy release said.
The multinational forces participating in Operation Pacific Angel-Sri Lanka were in Sri Lanka at the invitation of the Sri Lankan government, in coordination with each nation's Embassy and military commands.
Pacific Angel is a partner nation capacity and teamwork building program led by United States Pacific Command, based in Honolulu, Hawaii. Pacific Angel-Sri Lanka was the fourth and final such event held in 2010. Four more missions are planned for next year elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific region.