Soap suds and elbow grease have helped to raise thousands of pounds for tsunami victims.

Car wash - James Willars, son of fireman dad Lee, helps the firefighters' effort in raising funds for the tsunami appeal by washing cars, putting a smile on the face of car owner Sylvia Lazarus. Picture: ADRIAN RUSHTON (40367-2)

Dedicated retained firefighters from the Maldon, Burnham and Tillingham stations gave up their time on Saturday and Sunday to wash people's vehicles and raise cash for the victims of the Indian Ocean disaster.

Hundreds of people turned out to have their vehicles washed, whether dirty or not, to help donate cash to the cause.

Station officer of Maldon fire station, Martin Cable said: "We were extremely busy on both days so there will be a lot of clean cars travelling around Maldon now. There's been a great response with some people donating £15 when their car wasn't even that dirty."

So far Mr Cable estimates about £4,000 has been raised from the event.

At Coggeshall fire station, firefighters and their familes swapped fire hoses for carwash hoses and brushes for their sponsored car wash.

The fundraising event at Colne Road, Coggeshall, raised £2,040 for the appeal.

Meanwhile at Halstead fire station, a similar event raised £1,600.

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Published Monday, January 10, 2005

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