Earthquake In Turkey: How You Can Help The Victims

THE INDEPENDENT today launches an appeal to help the victims of the Turkish earthquake.

All money donated will be sent through the British Red Cross to help the 100,000 victims and repair the damage to essential services. It will also be used for long-term rebuilding projects.

After a request from the Turkish Red Crescent, the International Red Cross has launched an initial appeal for $6.92m (pounds 4.5m). In other promises of aid, the European Union said it was sending $2.1m, Britain will donate $800,000 and other countries and international charities have pledged $1.4m so far.

Greece, Turkey's traditional enemy, has joined dozens of countries in sending teams of rescuers to search for survivors still trapped under rubble, although the scale of the disaster has not been enough to persuade Greece to lift its block on EU aid to Turkey.

Among the rescuers are 30 British firefighters, including 10 members of Kent Fire Brigade's search-and-rescue team, who yesterday were all to fly from RAF Lyneham in Wiltshire to Izmit, the northwestern industrial town at the epicentre of the earthquake, which was measured at 7.4 on the Richter scale.

They will join 27 other British firefighters - from brigades in Cheshire, Leicestershire, Mid and West Wales, South Wales and the West Midlands - and 13 members of the International Rescue Corps who started search- and-rescue work in Dezce, east of Izmit. Some reports say there are as many as 10,000 people still trapped.