BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS
DATE:
01/09/2008
Visiting Chernobyl children given free eye care
YOUNGSTERS from an Eastern European country stricken by nuclear fallout were given free eye tests and glasses during their stay in South Devon.
The children went to the Specsavers branch in Union Street, Torquay, and were given checks by opticians.
The children are from Belarus, where the Chernobyl reactor exploded 20 years ago with devastating consequences.
Dangerous radiation was released into the atmosphere, and is still in the soil today and believed to be responsible for illnesses and shortened lives.
Each year the Chernobyl Children's Lifeline organises trips to England for hundreds of children from Belarus, so they experience an uncontaminated environment which can improve their health.
Store director Joy Filon said they had been involved with the charity for many years, and were delighted to welcome the youngsters to Torquay.
"Our opticians carried out eye tests for all the children, and if they needed glasses, they were supplied free of charge," she said.
"It is the least we can do to help them, as in their own country, most of their families cannot afford proper eye care."
Source:
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