JAPANESE residents in the south west collecting for the earthquake and tsunami disaster appeal have been overwhelmed by the sympathy and generosity shown towards them.

Miho Sato (pictured), who lives in Widecombe-in-the-Moor with husband Peter Reynolds and her two sons Takumi and Ke, told the Advertiser that local Japanese families have been very touched by the many messages of sympathy.

A fully-qualified nurse in her native Japan, Miho, 46, works as a care assistant at a residential home in Kingsteignton. She and other Japanese friends have been collecting money, among other places, outside Tesco in Kingsteignton.

'I really want to say thank you to the English people and thank you to the supermarket.'

So far the group has collected £1,200, which will go to the British Red Cross Tsunami Appeal and ShelterBox.

She said that in Totnes a homeless man emptied his pockets and a busker gave them all his earnings. A mother outside Tesco emptied her purse into the collecting bucket on the way in and added another £10 on the way out.

Each donor has received a hand-made origami crane, a symbol of good luck and a badge for the children.

Written messages show how the British have taken the plight of the Japanese to heart.

'My thoughts are with you,' says one. 'Never have I been so emotionally affected,' says another.

Husband Peter said: 'It's not just people walking past dropping in money, they have been talking about their feelings, this has really got home to them. This is one of those times when you've got to say thank you to the TV for those images.'

Miho's own family comes from Nagano, a mountainous area in the centre of the country which hosted the 1998 Olympic Winter Games. The earthquake caused a landslide and some buildings to be destroyed but she said that her family is safe.

The shortage of petrol means food cannot be transported. There are also power cuts and aid has been slow to get there as it cannot pass through the nuclear affected area.

She said that they keep up to date watching Japanese news bulletins on the internet and her sons have been in touch with their father, a hospital doctor in the region.

To be here, when the people of her country are suffering so far away has been hard but she added: 'English people are very generous. We were out on Red Nose Day and people were still coming up then.'