A MAN is already planning his next mission to Sri Lanka to help people living in forgotten areas ravaged by the tsunami.

Chris Houston, 26, of Little Queen Street, Dartford, is planning a major fundraising event in London to purchase new boats for fishermen in the eastern region of Sri Lanka.

His decision follows a 13-day trip to the country when Mr Houston and two friends delivered medication, spent £3,500 on food, aid and equipment, and re-built a pre-school.

The loss-control surveyor said: "We said before we left if we managed to help one person it would be worthwhile and we managed to help hundreds."

Mr Houston and friends, Dominique Geysen, from Spain and Sri Lankan-born Augustine Monney Sinnathamby, consulted the Red Cross and UNICEF after landing in Colombo three weeks ago before deciding where the aid was most needed.

They drove seven hours to the eastern Tamil-held area because larger agencies are focusing on the south and west of the country.

They handed a third of their medication to the Red Cross and the rest to a devastated hospital in Batticaloa, near Trincomalee. They also restored a pre-school by installing electricity, putting in windows and painting the walls, all in three days.

The team also discovered 100 people in a house north of the town, which had gone un-noticed, and provided three-days' worth of supplies until other agencies reached them.

Road blocks and military curfews in the country, which is still in a state of civil war, meant it was impossible for the team to travel further north.

And now with contacts in the east, Mr Houston believes it is most viable to try and continue providing sustainable help there.

"Fishermen have been severely affected so, hopefully, if we can provide them with boats, they will not have to continue relying on handouts," he said.

Further details on the fundraising event will be reported in News Shopper or visit groups.msn.com/tsunaid