REDDITCH firefighters have held several events and are planning others to raise cash for the hundreds of thousands of people who were made homeless and had their lives devastated by the Asian tsunami.

On Christmas Eve, the firefighters took part in a bag-packing event at Marks & Spencer in the Kingfisher Centre to raise money for the National Firefighters Benevolent fund. A total of £1,271 was raised.

But on Boxing Day morning, as people across the globe woke to the news of the devastation in Asia, the firefighter's fund-raising committee held an emergency meeting and decided the money should all go to the tsunami relief fund.

With the kind permission of Marks & Spencer, the crews again helped shoppers pack their bags on Saturday to raise more cash.

Sub-officer Bob Morris said more events were planned.

"When something like this happens, cash and aid must be raised immediately and sent to help these people.

"But this is a disaster on such a huge scale and people must carry on giving money for a long time to come.

"The rebuilding of these totally devastated communities will be a huge, ongoing battle."

He said the crews were planning more events such as sponsored car washes and details would be published nearer the time.