Dundee’s largest ever shipment of foreign aid has been despatched.
An incredible 91,000 bars of soap and 18 tonnes of clothing left Tayside bound for refugees stranded in Serbia.
The mass delivery, organised by local humanitarian charity Dundee Refugee Support, will help an estimated 15,000 displaced people.
A 40-foot, 25 tonne lorry will now take two days to reach Serbia with the load before distributing it to refugee camps along the Serbian border.
Mike Strachan, chairman of Dundee Caring City, the charity which operates the Dundee Refugee Support project, told The Courier that the size of the delivery is testament to the generosity of Taysiders.
He said: “We’re really looking forward to getting this shipment out. It will be the largest shipment of aid to refugees from Dundee ever in history so it’s quite a big thing.
“None of this could have been achieved without the massive and very kind hearts of all those who have donated and those who help to sort the donations into aid packages ready to be sent.
“While politicians decide how to stop people fleeing for their lives, the Caring City Network is continuing to do all we can support the vulnerable and terrified children, women and men who find themselves in limbo.
“Today’s shipment brings the total of aid dispatched to the region to over 200 tonnes. That’s over quarter of a million 286,000 SoapAid Hygiene Bars and 100,000 clothing packs for the most vulnerable.”
Mr Strachan added: “In this humanitarian crisis, where people are dying daily, the aid from Dundee, Perth and the surrounding areas will undoubtedly save the lives of children, women and men who would otherwise perish in the sub-zero winter conditions across the refugee camps in Serbia.”
Joe FitzPatrick, MSP for Dundee City West, said: “This is a testament to the people of Dundee, Perth and farther afield Mr Strachan told me that the charity even had a lorry load of aid from Orkney a couple of weeks ago which will form part of the shipment.”
For more on Dundee Refugee Support and the work they carry out, visit the charity’s Facebook page.