A house built with money donated by people in Ashford has been handed over to a family in Sri Lanka, on the fourth anniversary of the Boxing Day tsunami.

The UK Friends of Galle (UKFG) was set up by Devsiri Hewavidana and family immediately after the tsunami of 2004, which killed 230,000 people.

Mr Hewavidana, a manufacturing engineer and journalist for a national newspaper in Sri Lanka who lives in Ashford with his wife and three children, was born in Galle and felt compelled to give time and money to help his fellow Sri Lankans after disaster struck.

Over the past four years UKFG has raised £100,000 with which it has built seven houses, a library, a classroom, has given 160 scholarships and has donated books and shoes to more than 900 children.

Mr Hewavidana said: “The suffering is still going on but many big charities have moved on.

“Only small grass roots organisations like ours are still there.

“Unfortunately the economic situation has made many sponsors drop out and we haven’t the heart to stop children’s money so we are struggling to support them ourselves.”