ReliefWeb

Rome, Italy, 15.01.2010 - Five days after the launching of its emergency appeal, AGIRE, an umbrella organization which gathers 11 Italian and International NGOs, has already raised over 6mln/€ to help the populations stricken by the earthquake.

In the meanwhile member organizations of AGIRE are already on the ground conducting assessment of damage and distributing first aid kits to the population. At the moment the AGIRE's members who are already moblized in the island are: ActionAid, Terre Des Hommes, CESVI, Save the Children and VIS. Those are going to be joined in the next few days by INTERSOS, CISP, COOPI and GVC, whose emergency and first-relief teams are ready to depart.

However, despite the immediate response, and the unprecedented generosity of the Italian population, NGOs on the ground are reporting heavy logistical constraints on the island which are dampening relief efforts. There is shortage of virtually everything, from shelter to water purification kits, in particular the risks for public health are on the rise, given the presence of corpses all around the streets.

Contact:

g.diblasi@agire.it

(+39) 06.64.78.16.08