Human Appeal warned coronavirus will be devastating to those living in camps.

A charity has issued an emergency appeal to combat the spread of coronavirus in vulnerable communities both at home and abroad.

Human Appeal is asking for donations to pay for customised Covid-19 hygiene kits that can protect a family of six from the virus for a month.

The international relief charity will distribute the kits in the UK and nine countries affected by severe poverty or armed conflict, with a focus on displaced people living in refugee camps.

Each kit will contain alcohol-based hand sanitiser, soap, surgical face masks, disposable gloves, wet wipes, disinfectant, detergent, toilet paper and sponges. They will also include an easy-to-understand guide to reducing the risk of catching and spreading the virus.

The kits will cost £70 and be distributed in the UK, Iraq, Pakistan, Palestine, Syria, Somalia, Yemen, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Lebanon.

A Human Appeal spokesperson said: “Local media in Syria are already reporting cases of coronavirus, which are unconfirmed by government sources.

“If the virus reaches camps, where people are already struggling with inadequate healthcare, poor hygiene provisions and overcrowding, it will spread at an alarming rate and is likely to cause a devastating and widespread loss of life.”

Dr Hasan Alked works at a Human Appeal hospital in Idlib, Syria. He said: “A Covid-19 infection in our region would be disastrous, and the virus would spread rapidly and severely.

“Medical staff aren’t prepared, equipped or trained to deal with an outbreak of this level, and we are terrified what coronavirus could mean for families that are already weakened, distressed and unable to isolate themselves.”

Donations can be made via the charity’s website.