A group of Syrian refugees in northwest England are lending a hand to communities devastated by flooding in the wake of one storm and bracing for another.
Members of the Rethink Rebuild Society, based in Manchester, traveled to areas around nearby Rochdale to help fill and distribute sandbags on Tuesday.
"We saw the pictures on TV and wanted to help," Yasser al-Jassem, a 35-year-old teacher who arrived in England in May, told the Guardian. "The people of Greater Manchester have been very good to us, and so we wanted to offer our help to them."
Al-Jassem came up with the idea to aid in local flood prevention efforts, according to the group's Facebook page.
"He says that as Syrian refugees, they are honoured to take part in community service to give back to the communities that have so warmly taken them in," the post states.
The Rethink Rebuild Society solicited members to pitch in again on Wednesday, as Winter Storm Frank was set to slam into the U.K.
Since Christmas, storms and severe flooding have battered parts of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Thousands of residents remain without power, and transportation, including roads and ferries, have been disrupted. On Tuesday, a 300-year-old bridge in North Yorkshire collapsed, forcing people into lengthy rerouting to get through town.
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