"I am indebted to all our volunteers who have taken time off from their day jobs to go and offer their services, as well as the many members of the public here in Keighley and across the UK who have donated so generously."
Source/Credit: Keighley News
By Alistair Shand | May 14, 2015
A KEIGHLEY man has headed out to Nepal to co-ordinate a charity’s work to help earthquake victims of the earthquake disaster.
Dr Aziz Ahmad Hafiz, a GP and president of Keighley Ahmadiyya Muslim Association, left for the devastated country this week.
He expects to spend up to ten days there in his role spearheading Humanity First’s emergency response.
Dr Hafiz will meet the teams working on the ground and assess short and long-term needs.
He will also be meeting with United Nations staff and Nepalese Government officials.
“There is a lot that needs to be done,” said Dr Hafiz, who has been a volunteer with the charity for 20 years since he studied was a student at the former Greenhead School in Keighley.
“I will be reviewing the current relief work in terms of food and water and the medical needs.
“Meetings will take place to ensure the relief work is co-ordinated with the Nepal government and its needs.
“We will also be looking at ways of accessing villages that still have challenges in getting supplies, using partners on the ground.
“And we want to secure passage for water survival boxes, which include vital water purification filters provided by the Rotary club.”
After an initial assessment of the situation in Kathmandu a 12-strong team of volunteers from Humanity First – including doctors, paramedics, firefighters and logistics staff – was dispatched to the capital soon after the disaster struck.
Following briefings with the United Nations and the Nepalese authorities, the team was stationed in Gorkha – near the epicentre of the massive 7.8 magnitude quake – where it set up a primary care clinic.
“A tragedy of such magnitude brings home the reality of nature’s forces and how small and insignificant we are,” said Dr Hafiz.
“I am indebted to all our volunteers who have taken time off from their day jobs to go and offer their services, as well as the many members of the public here in Keighley and across the UK who have donated so generously.
“Managing the response to a disaster of such magnitude is a huge logistical task and the UN as well as the world’s many non-governmental organisations are doing a sterling effort in the face of overwhelming challenges on the ground.
“To support the teams there are many volunteers within the UK and abroad, who ensure they are safe and prepared.”
Well over 7,000 people are known to have died in the earthquake, but the figure is continuing to rise.
Many thousands more people have been injured and lost their homes and millions are in need of water, sanitation and hygiene support.
Dr Hafiz is director of disaster relief for Humanity First, which was inspired by the worldwide Ahmadiyya Muslim community.
The charity, which is registered in over 40 countries across six continents, has been working on human development projects and responding to disasters since 1994.
Read original post here: Keighley man heads Nepal earthquake relief mission
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