A FUNDRAISING appeal to bring a young Indian earthquake victim to Britain for treatment after he was saved from certain death by Rapid UK rescue workers has reached in excess of £8,000.
Director of the Okehampton-based charity Graham Payne said this week there had been a tremendous response to the appeal both locally and from the Indian communities in London, Leeds and Bradford.
Members of Rapid UK, who were part of the international team involved in locating and rescuing survivors from the wreckage of one of India's worst earthquakes three weeks ago, grew very attached to 10-year-old Parth Joshi after spending nine hours easing him from tons of rubble.
For nearly four days the child lay in darkness, buried in rubble next to his dead younger brother and his mother, who also later died in the rescue attempt. Parth's leg had to be amputated and he suffered a fractured shoulder.
An Oxfordshire company has offered to pay for a prosthetic leg for the boy and funds are needed to pay for flights to and from the UK for Parth and his father and accommodation. The youngster will need to make six to eight trips to the UK until he is 18 for new fittings.
Mr Payne said Parth's plight had touched the hearts of many people and it had been remarkable how quickly the money had come in to help him.
'The local support has been tremendous and we have donations from as far as Leeds and Bradford from the Indian communities,' he said.
'At the moment we are not sure when he will be coming to Britain because it depends on his medical condition or exactly how much money we need but any surplus will be used to set up a trust fund for Parth.'
Anyone who wants to make a donation can call Mr Payne on 01837 851443.