Christian Wilcox & Ian Virtue at the airport in Detroit before leaving for Nepal. (Photo courtesy of Tammy Wilcox)Christian Wilcox & Ian Virtue at the airport in Detroit before leaving for Nepal. (Photo courtesy of Tammy Wilcox)
Chatham

Locals Survive Quake In Nepal

Two young men from Tecumseh are safe after surviving the 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Nepal.

Tammy Wilcox says her son, 20-year-old Christian, and his friend 19-year-old Ian Virtue were at a tea house in the mountains when the quake happened.

"They said it was like a bunch of trucks rolling by and then everything started shaking a lot," says Tammy. "Their guide took them and they ran out to an open spot. He said he saw some buildings crumbling and a tower fall, and people screaming and crying."

Meanwhile, the Red Cross is collecting donations to help those affected by the quake.

"The medication, some tents, emergency water, things like that, that's our standard," says Janet Brunschot, community services coordinator for disaster management in Chatham-Kent. "Anything beyond that won't be known until we get there and a complete assessment is done of the needs of the people."

Donations to the Red Cross can be made in person at any of their offices, over the phone, or online by clicking here.

The death toll from Saturday's quake has now surpassed 4,400 people.

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