Travel agents in Bolton are to go to Pakistan to help the flood relief appeal.
Bolton’s Travel Store in Derby Street will see boss Kamran Khan and staff member Abdullah Ajaz heading to Balochistan, where floods have destroyed the lives of many people.
Abdullah has family in Punjab, Balochistan and Salkot and although everyone is okay, he is hearing from his cousins first-hand the devastation the flood is causing.
He said: “One of my cousins called us and he informed me what was going on.
“After that, my parents started talking about it, so we thought we could do something to help.
“My cousin has gone to Balochistan to help and we will be using the money to help the victims.
“When I saw the news, it was brutal and then a client came in and told me the details.”
After starting a Go Fund Me page, anyone who walked into the Travel Store would donate, with one even donating £1,000.
Abdullah said: “This is just the beginning as we’ll do more but at the moment as people come in, almost everyone will donate.
“Where we live is not affected by the flood, but anything could happen, so they are prepared.
“It’s painful to see people suffering over there and hearing about it can be upsetting.”
The money will be used to help provide food and shelter for people displaced by the flood.
READ: Amir Khan donates to Imran Khan's Pakistan flood relief
Manager at The Travel Store, Kamran Khan said: “I’ve been myself to the areas affected before the flood just last year and have seen how beautiful the places like Hunza Valley are.
“To see videos of those places destroyed and under water is heart-breaking.
“These people are in need, and I want to get more involved.”
The online total and cash donations now amount to just over £4,000.
The flood in Pakistan has been regarded by top climate officials such as Sherry Rahman as a climate disaster, with the country home to over 7,000 glaciers, more than anywhere outside Antarctica.
The glaciers are starting to melt due to hotter temperatures causing break-off rivers which then burst.
Over 1000 people have now lost their lives.
Donate here to the Go Fund Me page. (www.gofundme.com/f/a3mtp-flooding-in-pakistan?qid=b4cd276a6a04441122ff1b9c2703904f)
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel