A £50,000 appeal is being launched by a York-based charity to help mountain tribespeople in Thailand who were hit by the worst flooding in half a century.

Penelope Worsley, of Heslington, founder of the Karen Hilltribes Trust, says the Karen people have suffered landslides, their rice fields have been destroyed and their roads have been left impassable.

She said: “Villagers and children were left without food for the forthcoming season. The simple irrigation systems in the rivers have been destroyed, meaning they don’t even have the chance to grow rice next year.”

Penelope has been working with the Karen people for 14 years after setting up the Karen Hilltribes Trust in memory of her son Richard.

The trust helps about 40,000 people in 100 square miles of north Thailand, assisting in projects to ensure they have clean water and education for the children.

The Press recently reported how a young woman from York, Natalie Jackson, had been helping a deaf Karen boy to communicate for the first time by teaching him to sign.

Penelope said she would be travelling out to Thailand next week and will spend a month visiting many of the villages. She said she had heard that hundreds of children might not be able to go to school this year through lack of rice, transport and available accommodation in dormitories.

“Families, already some of the poorest people in the world would be even more at risk of poor health and no education.”

She said the situation was so serious that she was launching a £50,000 appeal. “Long-term help is needed to provide funds to rebuild strong irrigation systems, provide food and accommodation for students. The Trust bought a large tractor a few years ago to clear silted flooded land and put the fields back into production, enabling people to take control of their own lives.”

• Donations, however small, can be made online at karenhilltribes.org.uk or by cheque to the Karen Hilltribes Trust, 88a Main Street, Fulford, York YO10 4PS.