SINGAPORE — A Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) C-130 has arrived in Vientiane, Laos, on Thursday (July 26) as part of relief efforts for thousands of people affected by a massive flood caused by the collapse of a hydropower dam three days ago.

Singapore's Minister of Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan said in a Facebook post on Thursday evening that the first of two RSAF cargo planes landed in the Laotian capital bearing emergency supplies and equipment arising from the collapse of the Xe Pian-Xe Namnoy Dam in Attapeu province.

"The supplies were handed over by our Ambassador to Laos Dominic Goh and Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) Mission Commander and Director-designate of the Changi Regional Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Coordination Centre (RHCC) Colonel Mohd Fahmi Bin Aliman to Lao Vice Minister of Labour and Social Welfare Baykham Khattiya," said Dr Balakrishnan.

"I am confident that Laos will have the resilience to overcome this adversity and recover strongly," he added.

The Ministry of Defence (Mindef) said in a media release on Thursday evening that the cargo plane had "airlifted humanitarian supplies to Laos" on Thursday afternoon.

Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said in a Facebook post earlier on Thursday that the plane departed Singapore at 4pm from Paya Lebar Airbase.

Mindef said the relief package, worth approximately S$280,000, comprised of tents, meal rations, bottled water, medical supplies, and five rubber dinghies with outboard motors donated by the SAF.

Officers from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) will also be delivering 11 large modular field tents to aid relief efforts with the second C-130 flight that is scheduled to depart on Friday, added Mindef.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Wednesday the SCDF officers will also be conducting needs and risk assessments as part of their disaster relief efforts.

On Wednesday, the Singapore Government announced that it would be contributing US$100,000 (S$136,000) as seed money to kickstart a public fundraising appeal by the Singapore Red Cross that will aid in the flood relief efforts.

The scale of the disaster is still unclear, in part because of the inaccessibility of the area but also because reports from the communist country's state media have been scant and sketchy.

The official Laos News Agency said that 27 people were confirmed dead and 131 were missing following the failure of the dam on Monday, a subsidiary structure under construction as part of a hydroelectric project in the province of Attapeu.

Earlier reports had suggested the death toll would be much higher and, on Wednesday, the Vientiane Times had said more than 3,000 people were waiting to be rescued from swirling floodwaters, many of them on trees and the rooftops of submerged houses.

The dam that collapsed was part of the US$1.2 billion (S$1.6 billion) Xe-Pian Xe-Namnoy power project, which involves Laotian, Thai and South Korean firms. Known as "Saddle Dam D", it was part of a network of two main dams and five subsidiary dams.

The project's main partner, South Korea's SK Engineering & Construction, said part of a small supply dam was washed away and the company was cooperating with the Laos government to help rescue villagers.

The firm blamed the collapse on heavy rain. Laos and its South-east Asian neighbours are in the middle of the monsoon season that brings tropical storms and heavy downpours. WITH AGENCIES