A Harrow couple have been collecting food and clothes in the wake of typhoon Haiyan but they did not expect such a huge response from the community.

In a heart-warming show of local spirit, Anita Tablada and her husband, Chris, asked a couple of friends to help pack bags of food and clothes to send to the Philippines following the disaster.
Mr Tablada is from the Philippines and still has relatives in the country.

To their amazement, hundreds of bags been donated to the family in order to be sent over to the Asian country.

Mrs Tablada, of Merlins Avenue, Harrow, feels that the real credit should go to the community and her in-laws.

She said: “We were told by our in-laws over in Ilford about this and we thought we would send some bags in support. After sending out a couple of e-mails to my friends, I was amazed at the response the cause received.

“The next thing I know, we have a house full of bags containing all sorts of foods and clothes. My husband has relatives on the north side of the Philippines which thankfully wasn’t affected, but he still has relatives in the south and it is deeply important that this aid gets sent to them.”

The family will take their collection to Ilford this evening before flying the bags out tomorrow.

The Harrow woman added: “This has been absolutely marvellous. The support that the community have shown, they are the ones who deserve all the credit. It is very heart-warming to see that people from all cultures have contributed to this, everyone has been so kind and generous.”