ShelterBox help to Myanmar to be 'a lot of work'

Workers from Cornwall-based international disaster relief charity ShelterBox are responding to an earthquake in Myanmar and Thailand, bosses say.

The 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar on Friday has caused more than 1,600 deaths and led to the collapse of numerous buildings.

ShelterBox, which specialises in supporting people to rebuild lives after disaster or conflict, said a team would be flying out to Bangkok but its focus would be on Myanmar.

CEO Sanj Srikanthan said the charity had "a lot of work ahead" but it was "absolutely essential" to provide emergency shelter to keep people safe.

He said: "We're sending an assessment team of four people to look at what's been happening, where are the needs, and how we get the aid to the affected population.

"There is a lot of trauma associated with an earthquake and people will be scared to sleep under a hard roof, and, of course, with our tents and tarpaulins, you can sleep out with just light protection in case there are aftershocks as well."

Mr Srikanthan said difficulties in providing aid during a natural disaster included accessing those most affected and getting the funding to be able to respond.

The charity said it had launched an emergency appeal as support was "crucial in making this response possible".

ShelterBox said it previously worked in Myanmar after Cyclone Nargis in 2008, after conflict in 2013, and to the Rohingya crisis in 2017.

It said that, prior to the earthquake, the country already had the fifth highest number of people in need of humanitarian assistance across the world.

Mr Srikanthan said: "The Myanmar people are incredibly resilient warm, welcoming; but they will be traumatised by this experience as any population will.

"It will be a case of trying to help the people who have been hit by the earthquake, but also thinking about wider needs in the population as well, so it's a lot of work we have ahead of us."

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