8am : up and running. Grab a quick cup of tea. Car does not start. No power getting through so hit the battery a few times and first miracle of the day happens, it starts. Roshan the house watcher is most impressed!!

8.30am : meet with Nimali, the head of the local Montessori. Nimali speaks good English and has been the focal point for many of the people who have lost everything. There are some local families from the nearby village of Seeni Modera who have lost everything and need help. Back in car and drive around to see them.

9am : find the villagers. With Bandula translating discover that the village has been wiped out. No aid has found its way. Those whose houses are still standing are there but do not sleep on site. Find 3 women who show me their destroyed Singer sewing machines. No way to repair. Ask if anyone else is in same position. Tell them that we will be back at 11am and to collect anyone who is in need of sewing machines.

10am : meeting with Commander Jagrat of the Sri Lanka navy. CO Jagrat has agreed to supply us with 10 engineers to assist at the engine repair workshop which is set up in Mawella. The spare parts arrived, engineers are on sight. He has a favour to ask. The adjacent school needs help.

10.30am : head down to local school with CO Jagrat. Am saluted at all the way through the base. Feels pretty good!! Meet with Principal. Girls school with 278 students. 179 families have lost everything, clothes, shoes and some lives. Children will not go to school without uniforms and they are trying to get people back. Need 800 yards of white cloth. Can we help. Agree to buy the cloth, will meet at 2.30pm with an English teacher who will go to get the cloth with me. CO Jagrat is happy and agrees to get more engineers for another site.

11am : back to Seeni Modera. 5 families need a sewing machine. Ask one woman to come with us to the Singer shop in Tangalle.

11.30am : arrive at the Singer shop and choose the machines. Each machine costs US$220 including negotiated Tsunami discount. Now need to pay. Will not take credit card so off to bank. 1 hour later able to get money out!!

12.30pm : pay for machines, start loading them into back of the car. Need all the ancillaries such as needles, thread etc so into the tailor shop to buy a starter pack of cloth.

1.30pm : back to Seeni Modera and unload the machines. The women, children and their husbands are all there. They clearly cannot believe it. One woman explains that their lives have been given back to them and our deeds will never be forgotten. A very moving moment that makes you feel humbled by the simplicity of what you have done.

2.30pm : back to the school to hook up with the English teacher. Drive 8 km's out of town to the tailor. Buy 800 yards of white cloth and of course negotiate the Tsunami discount. Cost SLR's 40,000. This will be sufficient to make 300 uniforms.

3.30pm : back to school. Question now is who will make the uniforms and how to pay. Agree to fund payment - SLRs 50 per uniform, if they give our new seamstresses the chance to do the contract. They agree. Rush back to Seeni Modera and bring our friend to meet the teacher. Deal done and we now have 5 families employed to make 300 uniforms. She must go to the school tomorrow to get the measurements. Arrange with local Tuk Tuk driver to provide transport.

4pm : back in Seeni Modera. The village cannot believe what has happened to them in 1 short day. They are speechless. Give them one last lecture on making sure they do a good job and leave. They are in tears.

4.30pm : time to check on the boatyard that Alison has set up. She has organized two fibre crews and ordered the raw materials but will there be any boats there. Find 40 boats in various stages of disrepair and more coming. Work starts tomorrow so we are off to a good start.

5pm : just down the road the navy is packing up. Notice that they can only do 1 engine at a time and that there are 9 engineers. Discover that they only have one set of tools. Raymond, who is overseeing the project as of that minute, gets list of requirements and will go to Matara tomorrow to source the equipment. There are 40 plus engines to repair.

5.30pm : Nimali comes around to thank everyone for what they have done. Time to go home and reflect on a hectic day. Managed to spend just under US$2,000. Now need to get the receipts in order. Administration must be done even here!