Thomas Cook Group | North America

Supporting relief efforts in Haiti

For Immediate Release

Jan. 28, 2010

SUPPORTING RELIEF EFFORTS IN HAITI

TORONTO – Following the devastating earthquake that rocked Haiti the afternoon of Jan. 12^th, leaving its capital Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas in ruins, its people homeless and a nation in mourning, the entire world watched and responded, putting into motion a massive relief effort that sent and continues to send desperately needed aid into the country.

As a Group, Thomas Cook is one of the leading international tour operators to the Spanish Caribbean and has strong links with the area, so our immediate response was to offer our support and services as soon as the news came through.

In the U.K., the Group was quick to contact the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC), which represents and coordinates the activity of 13 major UK charitable organizations including Oxfam and Christian Aid, among others, and has been working closely with UNICEF, which is coordinating international relief through its worldwide network.

In addition, each of the Group’s branches has also been doing their part – aircraft out of the U.K., Scandanavia and Belgium has been used to fly out surgical teams and aid workers, and cargo space has been cleared to make room for large supplies of desperately needed equipment as well as portable water tanks and boxes of water purification tablets and medical kits.

Here in Canada, the people of Thomas Cook also sprang into action raising $4,365, which was matched by the company with all the proceeds going to Red Cross Canada. In turn, the monies donated overall are also being matched by the Government of Canada, bringing the grand total to almost $15,000 towards the Haiti relief effort.

We also provided air seats to GlobalMedic doctors to get them into Puerto Plata and allowing passengers who requested it, where possible, to cancel their travel plans and donate the proceeds to Red Cross Canada. We are also in close contact with Canadian Medical Assistance Teams (CMAT) to provide whatever assistance we can provide now and in the future, as Haiti will continue to need our help to rebuild.