AN 11-year-old survivor of an Indian earthquake last year which killed 20,000 people has been reunited with the Okehampton-based charity who rescued him from the ruins of his home.
As part of a two-week visit to the UK to have a new artificial limb fitted, Parth Joshi met up with director of the charity Graham Payne and Rapid member Nick Spence, with whom he has formed a close bond, at the Devon County Show on Saturday.
Mr Payne said it was wonderful to see Parth again after his first trip to England last summer for treatment which was funded by a Rapid Appeal.
'Parth has grown three inches so he needed a new leg but he has also been fitted with an ankle joint this time which will help him with his bowling because he is mad keen on cricket,' said Mr Payne.
'He is doing very well at school and we were delighted to see him looking so well.'
Parth was trapped under rubble for four days before he was found by members of the Rapid rescue team and his left leg was so badly damaged it had to be amputated. The youngster lost his mother and five-year-old brother in the disaster.
The charity grew so attached to the brave young boy that they decided to mount a fundraising appeal to bring him to England for treatment and donations came flooding in. Within a few weeks £15,000 had been raised.
During his stay in England, Parth visited Rapid's headquarters in Gloucester and also travelled to Newquay and London to see the sights.
Parth will return to the UK in 12 months time for a new fitting and these visits will continue until such time as he stops growing.
l Pakistan is the latest country in which the charity has set up a Rapid response team to deal with disasters. There are now teams in France, Spain, Turkey, Peru and new Zealand and Columbia is looking promising.
l On June 8, the Peruvian ambassador is arriving in Holsworthy where he will be presented on behalf of Rapid UK with two ambulances. This will be followed up with training later in the year. Mr Payne said the ambulances from Holsworthy and Barnstaple were perfectly good vehicles but they no longer complied with European law.
l A fundraising day and firework display for Rapid UK will be held in September at Okehampton Rugby Club.