A Gift of the Givers team will leave South Africa on Wednesday to join rescue efforts in Indonesia following a 7.5 magnitude earthquake and resultant tsunami that hit the island nation.

After a request from the Indonesian government for international assistance‚ Gift of the Givers search and rescue teams with highly specialised equipment‚ accompanied by a select number of medical personnel‚ will depart for Indonesia.

“If necessary‚ a larger medical contingent‚ also with specialised equipment‚ will follow a day or two later dependent on the challenges presented by the 7.5 earthquake and resultant tsunami on the island of Sulawesi that struck on Friday‚ September 28‚” said Gift of the Givers founder Imtiaz Sooliman.

“Information on the number killed‚ missing‚ injured‚ alive and trapped is difficult to come by with any certainty of accuracy given the inaccessibility of the area. Deployment of our experienced teams in the heart of the disaster will yield that information first hand‚” he added.