DG Ken Boylett (1050) and RIBI President Ian Thomson are joined by Rotarians from Rochdale and Denton & Audenshaw Clubs to fill Lifeboxes at DHL warehouse Rochdale.

Here the boxes packed onto a Bus, organised by Nino, to transport the Boxes from the Airport in Tbilisi the Georgian capital, to Gori, a town badly damaged and looted during the conflict.

These people are refugees, either from villages, or towns, who, due to the fighting, have left their homes and have had their possessions destroyed or stolen. They need help as they have very little left, and the Life Boxes give them a chance to start again.

Here we can see a box that has a sticker on it from Chelmer Bribge R/C, Essex

50 No. LifeBoxes have been despatched from our Rochdale Warehouse via Turkish Airlines and will be landed in Tbilsi, Georgia on Monday 25th August.

The boxes are being distributed by the "Georgian Social Relief Fund". The chairman, John Corlett, is a Rotarian member of RC of Northwich Vale

We are pleased to announce that you can now track ordered boxes online.

Once you have ordered a box and following initial processing you will receive an email confirmation of your box's unique ID number. You can use this number to check on the status of your box at any time from the "Box Tracking" link in the top menu.

In addition you will receive an automated second mail advising you of the destination when your box is shipped out of our warehouse to help those in need.

[Mr Gong inspecting the boxes at the LifeBox warehouse]

The Chinese Consul General in Manchester, Mr Gong Jianzhong, visited the LifeBox warehouse where the emergency box charity operated by the Rotary Club of Denton & Audenshaw is based. Mr. Gong accepted, on behalf of the Peoples Republic of China, a consignment of 100 LifeBoxes and 1200 Lifestraws.

Unfortunately due to the continued problems with getting aid accepted into Burma and being sure that the aid would be able to get through to where it was needed, LifeBox made the decision not to send the planned consignment of 100 boxes.

LifeBox proposes to dispatch 100 no. LifeBoxes to the disaster area together with an additional 500 no. Lifestraws. This quantity will benefit a village of up to 400 people.

Over 15,000 people have lost their lives (a figure that continues to rise) and hundreds of thousands have been made homeless by this devastating cyclone.

More news to follow...

Conditions and life in Kosovo is still very difficult for people living there. Poverty  and shortages prevail and winter is on the way. 72no. boxes consisting of Emergency (Cold) Boxes, LifeBoxes and Special boxes containing Wellington Boots and warm blankets are being sent overland in a consignment of Relief Supplies to Kosovo, by Hope and Aid Direct.

[Boxes are loaded swiftly from our warehouse]

This convoy leaves early October with a member of The LifeBox team, Rtn. Jill Bates, who is taking a week of her holidays to travel with the convoy and see the aid distributed.

[Boxes waiting for despatch from Rochdale depot]

Background

The devastating flood Yemyin (26th June, 2007) left behind thousand of people homeless in Kech and Gwadar districts of Balochistan, Pakistan. Due to this disaster the most vulnerable groups are women and children who are living in unhygienic and miserable conditions. Soon after the flood the NGOs (local and international) started mobilizing their efforts and relief towards the flood affected areas.

More than 800,000 people are homeless after this most recent Tropical Cyclone swept the coastal areas and made riverbanks burst causing widespread flooding and destruction.

In response to UN appeals for aid to the stricken areas of South Pakistan, LifeBox has sent: -

100 no. Boxes (60no. Emergency boxes, plus 40 no. of the newer Lifeboxes, All these boxes have 6 no. Lifestraw Filters packed inside together with a further 78 no. Items of household goods, clothes, shoes, blankets, first aid items etc.)

Boxes leave UK on Sunday on Emirates flight EK600, via Dubai and will be off-loaded in Karachi on Tuesday 17th July 2007.