NO-ONE watching the horrendous TV pictures of the Mozambique flood disaster can fail to be moved by the plight of thousands of men, women and children huddled on roofs and clinging to treetops awaiting rescue that, dreadfully, for hundreds may never come.

And for those who are saved by the heroic exhausted few of the helicopter crews, the awful prospect is hunger, destitution and disease as their lives and their country are devastated by a natural catastrophe whose magnitude is beyond description.

It is a plight that we beg you to relieve as today we join with UNICEF -- the United Nations Children's Fund -- to launch an appeal to ease the suffering of the most vulnerable victims, the 60,000 children caught up in one of Africa's worst-ever disasters.

They urgently need food, clean water, medicine and shelter and UNICEF needs your help and donations to be able to deliver this aid.

We know the strength of the compassion and generosity of East Lancashire's people. We are sure they will respond to this appeal today as never before.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.