An overwhelming response from Bradford folk is helping the stricken refugees of Kosovo.

Groups and individuals of all ages are working together to help the emergency relief efforts for thousands of people left destitute by Serb ethnic cleansing.

John Sargent, campaigns officer at Oxfam in Bradford, said he had never known such a public response to a crisis. "This appeal is the best-supported I can remember," he said.

Oxfam is one of 12 agencies working together on the nationwide disaster emergency appeal - which has raised an amazing £6million since Tuesday.

There has been a rapid aid response throughout the area.

Kwik-Fit in Legrams Lane has become a depot where the public can drop off goods to be shipped to refugees - and manager Dean Somerscale said the response had been great.

Yorkshire Water has given one million purification tablets and £200,000-worth of filtration equipment to the North Yorkshire branch of World Aid Transport Communications and Health, which will ship it to aid agencies working on the Albanian/Kosovon border.

And scouts throughout the district are manning drop-off points for clothing and blankets.

Shipley-based aid organisation Jubilee Outreach Yorkshire (JOY) has an appeal for donations of cash, food and blankets.

JOY co-ordinator Dr Kathy Tedd said the charity had been inundated with offers of help as the refugee situation worsened.

Working with the Sheffield-based aid agency Eurovision, JOY has already donated 1,000 blankets which are now en route to a refugee camp at Kavaje in Albania.

Dr Tedd said JOY was planning another mercy mission to the region next month.

"We've had a lot of calls over Easter and money's already starting to roll in."

And a group of Bingley pensioners are doing their bit to relieve the suffering. Ted Scott of Myrtle Court put 24 notes through residents' letterboxes asking for donations and was overwhelmed by the response.

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