Red Cross: You can help Tsunami victims

In the biggest relief effort in modern history, tonight cargo planes from around the world continue to land with food, vital medicine, water and sanitation supplies in the countries of South-east Asia that suffered apocalyptic devastation by walls of waves initiated by an underwater earthquake on Boxing Day. The death toll currently stands at seventy-seven thousand people in eleven countries stretching from Indonesia to East Africa. One third of the dead are said to be children. According to the World Health Organization, the five million survivors who must endure the stench of rotting flesh, hunger and a shrinking supply of drinking water are now under the threat of disease, namely cholera, diarrhoea and malaria. The governments of the United States, Australia and Japan have pledged a combined one hundred million U.S. dollars in relief but already damages are estimated in the billions of dollars. On the local scene, the Belize Red Cross is offering contact tracing assistance to anyone in Belize who may wish to get in touch with family members or acquaintances in any of the affected countries. To access that service, please contact Red Cross officers at phone numbers 222-4546, 822-2234 or 822-2054. According to Director General of the Belize Red Cross, Marylee Ellis, anyone wishing to donate money through the International Appeal can also make their contributions through those numbers. Tonight scientists are saying that the Boxing Day earthquake which registered 9.0 on the Richter scale, caused the earth to “wobble” on its axis.