URGENT EMERGENCY APPEAL - Kyekudo (Yushu) Earthquake

- From the Tibet Foundation -

http://www.tibet-foundation.org/news/urgent_emergency_appeal_-_kyekudo_yushu_earthquake/

You may have already heard the sad news of the devastating earthquake (a 6.9 magnitude) this morning at 07.49 (23.49 GMT) in Yushu (Kyedudo in Tibetan) in the northwest Province of Qinghai. This news has been widely broadcast on Chinese television and by the BBC.

Yushu County is 800km (500 miles) southwest of the provincial capital Xining. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region in the west and Kandze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in the east.

Having worked in this region in the past, Tibet Foundation is familiar with the area and is already in contact with local people and local authorities. Ninety percent of the population there is ethnic Tibetan. The area is one of the poorest and remotest regions in the country with very inadequate communication and infrastructure.

The powerful tremor struck around 8 am local time followed by several other quakes, destroying or damaging almost all the houses, also school buildings, medical clinics and hospitals in the county capital, Kyekudo. Information regarding nearby areas is not available at the moment due to landslides and the breakdown of telecommunications. The official report of casualties states that some 400 are dead and thousands more injured. The unofficial and unconfirmed news from local people is three times greater than this.

The Chinese government has a good record of responding efficiently to such emergencies. The government and the Chinese Red Cross have already sent officials to assess the situation. Due to the remoteness of the region and poor infrastructure it could be a very challenging task.

We are directly in touch with some local people and local officers, and the Foundation representative in the nearby Kandze Prefecture is coordinating our assessment of the situation. Your help is most urgently needed for the Tibetans in the region. Whatever support you can give towards immediate assistance for medicine, clothing and food, and also long-term support for rebuilding schools and health clinics, would be very much appreciated. All funds raised by Tibet Foundation will go immediately to the people in need with no intermediary agencies.

Please, we urgently request you to help the Tibetans in Kyekudo affected by this devastating earthquake. We assure you that whatever amount you can offer, however large or small, will go directly to assisting the people in Kyekudo.

Donations

Either:

Send your cheque made payable to Tibet Foundation (Yushu Earthquake) to Tibet Foundation, 2. St. James’s Market, London, SW1Y 4SB, UK

http://www.tibet-foundation.org/news/urgent_emergency_appeal_-_kyekudo_yushu_earthquake/

Projecto Coração da Madeira - The Heart of Madeira

The project “The HEART OF MADEIRA” is a non profit project, which offers physical and psychological support to the community of Madeira; wherever necessary. A task force of specialist volunteers has come together from different backgrounds and from various non government organisations; all with one purpose - to show social solidarity.

The purpose of the project is to:

1) Provide voluntary services in the areas of clean up, reconstruction and building advice; on a structural and architectural level - where privately owned houses were damaged during the freak flood of the 20th February 2010.

2) Distribute clothes and other material goods on behalf of and in collaboration with other organisations and institutions; including Caritas of Funchal.

3) Offer free specialised psychological support to people who have not yet received it

4) Investigate and determine other ways in which “The HEART OF MADEIRA” may more efficiently be able to help people who need it the most at this moment in time.

5)Collaborate with as many varied organisations as possible with a view to: maximising volunteer corroboration, efficiently receiving, handling and distributing material goods in order to distribute to benefit as many people as possible; as quickly as possible.

6) With this intent in mind, “The HEART OF MADEIRA” has already created partnerships with: AURA, Acreditar and The Buddhist Union of Funchal.

7) Publicly announce and advertise what material goods are needed in order to call upon Madeira’s sense of solidarity; and the solidarity of foreign contributors.

8) Collaborate with Madeira´s army, any and or all government institutions, any and or all non government organisations, local fire-brigades including the voluntary sector, any and or all social solidarity groups etc, with the intent to collaborate and not work in conflict or opposition.

We are not politically motivated. Our only motivation is to help our island and it’s people.

The project coordinators are volunteer psychologists who have been working in the army barracks since the 20th and 21st February 2010; Drª Isabel Rodrigues, Drª Carmo Aragão and Drª Venerina Conti.

If anyone wishes to donate furniture or other material goods, or if anyone knows of anyone who needs anything: please contact us.

Please note: We are not handling cash donations but you can donate through the English church in Funchal.