The British Red Cross has donated £25,000 from its Disaster Fund to support the Red Cross Society of China assist thousands affected by a major earthquake that struck Sichuan Province on 12 May. This is the worst earthquake to strike south west China in 30 years.The quake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale struck Wenchuan County in south west China's Sichuan Province. The epicentre was approximately 92 kilometres from Chengdu, the provincial capital and the tremors were felt as far away as the Chinese capital, Beijing.

The Red Cross Society of China will have a vital role to play in bringing emergency relief to those affected by this devastating earthquake

Pete Garratt, British Red Cross

The death toll continues to rise but latest reports put it at more than 8,000, with 20,000 people injured. In Dujiangyan city, a middle school classroom building collapsed and over 50 students were reported to have died. Some 80 per cent of the buildings in Beichuan County are reported to have collapsed.

The Red Cross Society of China's (RCSC) local branches have started to provide emergency relief assistance, allocating 557 relief tents and 2,500 quilts from its regional disaster preparedness centre in Xian to the affected areas in Sichuan Province.

The RCSC headquarters and the International Federation's regional office's joint emergency assessment team are preparing to leave Beijing on 13 May to go to Wenchuan to conduct an emergency assessment.

Pete Garratt, British Red Cross relief operations manager, said: "While we know that China is used to coping with natural disasters on a regular basis, this is clearly a major event. The local branches of the Red Cross Society of China will have a vital role to play in bringing emergency relief to those affected by this devastating earthquake."

Give to the British Red Cross Disaster Fund