Appeal for help to rebuild in Sichuan
Non-profit organisation Habitat for Humanity is asking Hongkongers for donations to help fund the rebuilding of quake-damaged homes
In a race against time, a charity is attempting to rebuild quake-damaged homes in Sichuan before the arrival of winter, and the group has asked Hongkongers for help.
"We've identified two heavily hit areas whose people and government have been the most receptive to our offer of aid," said Kester Yim, managing director of Habitat for Humanity China.
The organisation wants to rebuild 500 homes in two villages seriously damaged by last month's earthquake - one village in Tiantaishan and another in Gaohe town - and is appealing for donations to fund the project.
The quake, centred in Yaan , Lushan county, killed 195 people, disrupted the lives of 129,000, and caused about 2.8 billion yuan (HK$3.5 billion) of losses in Qionglai city, where the two villages - Maping and Jingkou - are, just five kilometres from the quake's epicentre.
Many of the villagers are low-income farmers without means to rebuild their homes, Yim said. The houses, about 800 square feet, will require 80,000 yuan each to restore. About 330 families live in Maping, with 676 in Jingkou.
Yim could not say when the project would be completed as the government was still assessing the area to ensure the land is geologically stable.