WASHINGTON — The number of American troops helping the relief effort in the typhoon-hit Philippines could triple to more than 1,000 by the end of the week, U.S. officials said Wednesday. Senior Obama administration officials said that after a very difficult first few days, they are cautiously optimistic that logistical bottlenecks that have held up large quantities of aid material are easing.
The first airlift of hygiene kits and plastic sheeting from the U.S. Agency for International Development was distributed Wednesday to help 10,000 families, and another consignment is due to arrive in the capital Manila on Thursday. The first shipment of U.S. food aid is expected to be distributed by the U.N. World Food Program in the next day or so.
The U.S. is using C-130 transport planes and Osprey helicopters to transport aid, which is now reaching out to coastal villages. The transport planes have evacuated about 800 victims of the disaster from Tacloban to Manila.
