TEAR Fund Press Release
For Immediate Release: 20/02/06
TEAR Fund Assisting Philippines' Landslide Victims
TEAR Fund New Zealand is working in Guinsaugon, the Philippines, to assist victims of the tragic landslide that
obliterated all in its path with a 10-metre wall of mud, trees and gravel, and killed an estimated 1,800 people.
TEAR Fund is working in Guinsaugon through TSKI, its local development partner in the region. An indigenous Filipino
development organisation, TSKI is reporting 75 of its clients are missing, presumed dead.
By operating directly through its local partner, already well established on the ground on Leyte Island, TEAR Fund has
been able to immediately provide victims with shelter and emergency supplies. TEAR Fund is also working to provide for
the needs of communities evacuated from 11 surrounding villages.
TEAR Fund's Development Manager Richard Barter was in the Philippines only days before the disaster. "In visiting with
TSKI last week I experienced first hand how demanding life is for these communities. This calamity will set villages in
the region back years," says Richard.
TEAR Fund is currently raising funds to assist victims of the Philippines' landslide. To donate you can visit their
website: www.tearfund.org.nz or call 0800 800 777.
ENDS