People in Bahrain have been urged to donate food or medicine, instead of clothes, to a nationwide aid drive for survivors of the Nepal earthquake.

The Bahrain Red Crescent Society (BRCS), located in Hoora, has been receiving donations as part of a Royal Charity Organisation (RCO) nationwide campaign to collect funds to rebuild Nepal, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

The United Nations said Saturday's magnitude-7.8 earthquake has affected eight million people across 39 districts in Nepal and killed more than 5,000 people, with officials expecting the number to reach 10,000.

“We do not want used clothes because of health and hygiene reasons, and urge the public to donate food and other aid materials,” said BRCS secretary-general Dr Fawzi Amin.

“We are not accepting used clothes and we urge people to take them back.

“All the food, medical and other aid will be collected and sent with the first consignment of aid to Kathmandu on May 4.”

RCO secretary-general and Bahrain Nepal Support Committee chairman Dr Mustafa Al Sayed said the campaign has been receiving a good response.

“We are getting good support from the public and expect to collect over 40 tonnes of aid,” he said.

A disaster response team from DHL has also been deployed to Nepal to provide logistics support at Tribhuvan Kathmandu International Airport.

The team consists of DHL employees from Bahrain, Belgium, the UAE, India, Malaysia and Singapore, who are working with the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs to mobilise and co-ordinate humanitarian relief efforts in Nepal.

“Our team comprises highly trained volunteers, who provide logistical expertise to help co-ordinate the relief aid at the airport for further distribution to the victims in the speediest manner possible,” said DHL Group chief executive Frank Appel.

Meanwhile, Nepalese Ambassador Mani Prasad Bhattarai said they were receiving calls from their nationals who have still not heard from their loved ones since last week's catastrophe.

“We are still getting several calls from our nationals who want information about the situation back home,” he said.

“We also request companies that have Nepalese nationals working with them to send them back to Nepal for a few days so they can be with their families in this tough time.

“The embassy further requests all concerned employers to provide, on humanitarian ground, at least one month salary in advance and other possible necessary support for Nepalese workers seeking help.”

The quake wrecked houses, flattened centuries-old temples and triggered avalanches on Mount Everest.

It caused dozens of aftershocks and was felt in three neighbouring countries. - TradeArabia News Service