Several major UK aid charities have launched emergency appeals for fundraising as they respond to what has been described as the most powerful earthquake to strike Myanmar in over 100 years.
The 7.7 magnitude earthquake, which struck on 28 March around 1pm local time, is so far thought to have killed more than 2,700 people, making it the second deadliest earthquake in the Asian country’s history.
The tremors caused significant damage in multiple cities across the country and in neighbouring Thailand and China, leading to the collapse of buildings, bridges, and other infrastructure. Myanmar has declared a state of emergency and has appealed for international aid.
Millions of people are thought to have no or limited access to food, clean water, or shelter, and many have lost their livelihoods as a result of the disaster. The effects of the earthquake have been significantly exacerbated by the ongoing Myanmar civil war, which has already left almost 20 million people in need of humanitarian assistance.
Emergency appeals launch
Human Appeal has launched an emergency appeal to raise funds to distribute essential food supplies, clean water and emergency sleeping kits to people in need.
The emergency relief packages will contain rice, cooking oil, salt, noodles, canned fish, cereal, biscuits, drinking water, blankets and sleeping mats.
British Red Cross has teams from the Myanmar Red Cross Society already on the ground responding to the disaster.
Its emergency appeal is raising funds to support search and rescue efforts, and to provide emergency healthcare to those in need. Its workers on the ground are also working to connect hospitals and clinics with emergency blood donations to support people who have been severely injured.
Christian Aid is working with partners with teams on the ground to offer food parcels, water kits, shelters, and cash for essential supplies to those affected.
Oxfam is working with local partners with teams on the ground to provide food supplies, clean water, and shelter to people in need.
Its CEO, Halima Begum, has since criticised the cuts to the aid budget in an interview with Sky News, saying that it will now be harder for aid charities and agencies to provide assistance in places like Myanmar.
Catholic overseas aid charity CAFOD has also launched an appeal to provide those affected with emergency food, water and shelter, although has otherwise provided little additional information.
Plan International, which supports women and girls around the world to achieve gender equality, launched an appeal to raise funds to support those affected by the earthquake while its teams are on the groundwork to “assess needs and stand ready to provide support.”
CARE International, which also focuses on supporting women and girls around the world, has teams on the ground working with partners to support those who have been injured or lost their homes due to the earthquake.
It also is fundraising to provide cash to cover essential needs; food and water; shelter, and health and medical services.
Christian charity Tearfund has also launched an appeal to support its local partners on the ground who are providing immediate cash assistance to enable people to buy food and other essentials, and has also been involved in search and rescue efforts.
No DEC appeal yet
The Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) has not yet launched an appeal but is “closely monitoring” the earthquake’s impact.
Its online monitoring website reads: “The full scale of destruction and loss is not yet clear, but we are deeply concerned for the safety and wellbeing of all those impacted.
“We are working closely with the DEC member charities to monitor the situation and assess it against our criteria for launching a national fundraising appeal in the UK.”
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