The powerful and deadly May 12, 2008 earthquake (7.9/8.0 Richter scale) killed over 80,000 people with an additional 9,000 people remaining unaccounted in the Sichuan Province of China.
There is an enormous displaced population of over 5 million, with 1.5 million still homeless especially around the epicenter in Wenchuan County, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Prefectures.
These areas are now facing an additional threat with the advancement of a harsh autumn bringing snow and freezing conditions to the high altitude and mountainous areas of the Lixian County where the population is mostly housed in temporary self constructed shelters.
Lixian County is too remote for inclusion of the current relief programme of distribution of electric blankets and quilts by the local government who has been working on winter relief with the distribution of winter quilts, coats, and some electric heaters and blankets.
ADRA New Zealand is funding a project to distribute home heating kits including electric heaters to more than 2900 housholds in six Lixian townships with an additional 17 kits being specifically designated to health centres in Xue-Cheng and a further distribution will be made to smaller local clinics to provide warmth to patients.
The distribution of these kits will be done locally by ADRA China in six townships most severely disadvantaged. The selected towns involved are at the highest altitude and were right at the epicenter of the earthquake. The population is predominantly of Tibetan and Oiang origin and suffered even more damage than their surrounding neighbours of the Wenchuan County.
It is fortunate that these areas have a reliable electricity supply and this makes the supply of heaters a better option than either electric blankets or clothing especially as the entire household is able to benefit from the generated warmth without the risks from tradition wood burners.
It is expected that these heaters will reduce the need for the effected families to outlay cash for their purchase and the savings will be used instead on the rebuilding of housing and livelihoods over the next few winter seasons.