A RESCUE worker from North Yorkshire last night spoke of the devastation caused by the Asian earthquake.

Julie Ryan, 38, is working with members of the of the International Rescue Corps (IRC), who are in the earthquake-hit region helping to search for survivors.

About 30,000 people are thought to have died and millions have been left homeless after the 7.6-magnitude quake flattened large parts of Pakistan, India and Afghanistan on Saturday.

Mrs Ryan, from Welburn, near Malton, was a member of the IRC team that helped to pull a 14-year-old boy alive from the rubble yesterday morning.

Speaking last night from the devastated city of Muzaffarabad, in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, she said people were desperate for medicines, food and water, and that there was a huge sense of loss.

The team, which also includes Sheena McCabe, from Easingwold, North Yorkshire, yesterday encountered hundreds of bodies, but they did manage to rescue the teenager.

Mrs Ryan said: ''This morning we rescued a 14-year-old boy from what we think was a hotel behind a bank.

''He was completely entombed in the concrete, but we made a hole in the concrete and shone a torch in and he grabbed the torch. He had a sore leg but managed to walk away from the scene.''

Mrs Ryan added: "At the moment we are still in the search and rescue phase, but there will come a point when we have to think about the people who have survived.

''There is a cut-off point when you have to stop searching for one person and look after all those who have survived."

As British families last night desperately waited for news of relatives caught up in the earthquake, Mrs Ryan said: ''There are a lot of displaced people living on the streets. These people have lost everything, including their loved ones.

''Everywhere we go there are people who have lost every member of their family. It is a desperate situation.''

Teams from other groups, including British International Rescue Dogs (Bird), and Rapid UK have travelled to the area to help.

Bird rescuers dragged a 20-year-old tailor from wreckage after he had been trapped for 54 hours.

The Disasters Emergency Committee, the umbrella group for Britain's leading aid organisations, is due to launch a joint fundraising appeal, as the international effort gets into full swing.

UK charities had been concerned about launching another major fundraising appeal after a succession of natural disasters, including the Boxing Day tsunami, Hurricane Katrina in the US, mudslides in Latin America, and famine in Africa.

But Britons have already confounded fears of "donation fatigue" by giving millions towards easing the plight of survivors.

Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said he expected the final total for British Government aid to the region would be very large.

"We are responding and shall respond to all requests that we can," he said.

The US has promised an initial contribution of up to $50m (£28m) for relief and reconstruction.