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England cricket captain Michael Vaughan and Marcus Trescothick, help members of the 27 squadron Royal Air Force and the Pakistan army, deliver relief aid to the people of Pakistan, on the 30 October 2005 [Picture: Cpl Chris Hargreaves]
Marcus Trescothick: "To see the houses and the people out there was quite a moving moment." [Picture: Cpl Chris Hargreaves]
England cricket captain Michael Vaughan helps a local Pakistani man distribute the aid in a small village devastated by the earthquake [Picture: Cpl Chris Hargreaves]

England cricketers Michael Vaughan and Marcus Trescothick, who are currently on tour in Pakistan with the rest of the team, were so moved by their visit to a children's hospital in Islamabad that they asked if they could help with the delivery of aid to the mountain villages devastated by the earthquake.

Vaughan and Trescothick worked alongside RAF and Pakistani service personnel to load an RAF Chinook at Chaklala, a Pakistani Air Force base, and then distributed the sacks of flour and family survival kits in the villages of Bagh and Rawalakot, which are 1829 metres (6,000 ft) up in the Himalyan Mountains.

Marcus Trescothick, England batsman, described the effect that seeing the earthquake's damage had had on him:

"To see the devastation with your own eyes is very moving, the scale of the damage is dramatic and I was shocked. 

"The British Service people are doing a fantastic job in support of the DFID aid effort and are working incredibly hard to get help to the worst affected areas.

"Britain has strong ties with the people of Pakistan and Michael Vaughan and I would humbly urge everyone to give what they can."

The Chinook helicopters can lift 6 tonnes of shelters, blankets and food up to the most inaccessible regions of the mountains and return with up to 24 casualties on stretchers.

The costs of operating the Chinooks in Pakistan, (£3M), has been provided as part of the Department for International Development's (DFID) pledge of £33M for immediate aid.

Related articles:

• IN PICTURES: RAF Chinook helicopters bring relief to Pakistan
• RAF Chinooks ready for action
• RAF Chinook helicopters deploy to Pakistan
• RAF Provides First Vital Air Lift Capability for NATO-Led Earthquake Relief Effort
• Royal Air Force Assistance to Pakistan Relief Effort
• British Forces fly ration packs and water into Pakistan

Related links:

• Earthquake Relief Operations: 2005
• Department for International Development
• 27 Squadron
• RAF Chinook

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