On Saturday, August 6th our counterpart organization Mano a Mano Internacional donated firefighting equipment and medical supplies (first aid, PPE, rehab, basic medical care) to SAR-FAB in Cochabamba. They are initiating a firefighting program, and the 7 firefighting suits from Mano a Mano comprise their inaugural set of supplies for training and in-the-field use. SAR-FAB is a civic search and rescue organization through the Fuerza Aérea Boliviana (FAB, or Bolivian Air Force) with around 400 volunteers.
Photos From the SAR-FAB Distribution on August 6th at Jorge Wilstermann Airport
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- Mano a Mano Internacional and SAR-FAB – August 6th, 2022
SAR-FAB
SAR-FAB is a civic search and rescue organization through the Fuerza Aérea Boliviana (FAB, or Bolivian Air Force) with around 400 volunteers. For more than 2 years, SAR-FAB volunteers have been contributing 60-80 hours of time every week with Mano a Mano’s Recovered Resources program in Cochabamba (like helping unload containers of medical supplies and equipment at our warehouse recently). We have previously donated supplies to help equip their ambulance.
Mano a Mano Internacional and SAR-FAB – August 6th, 2022
Preparing Firefighting Equipment & Medical Supplies For Donation at Mano a Mano Internacional
María del Rosario Choque Tapia is a SAR-FAB volunteer (with 7 years of service) that has helped coordinate their volunteer efforts with Mano a Mano Internacional; over the past 2 years SAR-FAB volunteers have been contributing 60-80 hours of time every week with Mano a Mano’s Recovered Resources program in Cochabamba. María talks about the donations of firefighting equipment and medical supplies from Mano a Mano and why they are helpful for SAR-FAB’s programs in Bolivia. Here the donations are being prepared and organized at Mano a Mano Internacional’s office and warehouse space in El Abra, before being transported to the SAR-FAB site at Jorge Wilstermann Airport where they were formally distributed on August 6th, 2022.
Video From the SAR-FAB Distribution on August 6th at Jorge Wilstermann Airport
Juan Urquidi from Mano a Mano Internacional walks through our donation of firefighting equipment and medical supplies for SAR-FAB on August 6th, 2022.
Supplies are Donated in Minnesota & Shipped to Bolivia
All of these supplies and equipment started as donations in our St. Paul, Minnesota warehouse and were shipped to Bolivia. Most of the firefighting equipment comes from firefighting departments in Wisconsin; you can see “Minong Ambulance” on the stretcher that was donated (in the video above, SAR-FAB volunteers try on the 7 firefighting suits that were part of Mano a Mano’s recent donation of firefighting equipment and medical supplies for SAR-FAB on August 6th, 2022):
Mano a Mano collects donated medical supplies, mobility equipment, and other in-demand items in Minnesota for shipment to Bolivia, where they are distributed to people and organizations in need throughout the country.
Learn More
- 68,797 Pounds of Supplies and Equipment On Their Way to Bolivia This Week (August 2022)
- Halfway Through 2022: Working Together to Help Bolivian Communities
- 2021 Summary of Medical Distributions in Bolivia
- Wisconsin Fire Equipment in Action in Bolivia (November 2021)
- Thanks Ogema, Wisconsin Fire Department! (September 2017)
- Unloading Supplies in Bolivia: Stretchers & Garden Tools (April 2016)
- What Do We Do With the Shipping Containers We Send to Bolivia from Minnesota?