Kind-hearted staff at a sushi restaurant in Barking have launched a relief fund to help the victims of the Japanese earthquake.

Oishi-Sushi in Arboretum Place acted after the country was hit by an 8.9 mega quake, which unleashed a tsunami that left at least 2,400 people dead, half a million homeless and triggered the worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl.

Feeling powerless to help, being 6,000 miles away, the restaurateurs set up an Internet fundraising site after customers began to make spontaneous donations at the dinner table.

Sushi chef Jack Ng, 28, said: “It’s such a tragedy. We feel terrible. Customers asked us to set up a donation box. They said ‘Organise donations, as you’re a Japanese restaurant’.

“They were saying if it happened in a poor country, people would take action more quickly. It’s such a big disaster.”

Colleague Zhi Qiang Xu, 25, said: “It’s very sad. Sometimes you can’t do anything, but we want to send money to Japan to help the people.”

Waitress Jennifer Lew, 43, echoed his view, saying: “There is nothing much we can do but we do try to help by collecting donations.”

Restaurant manager Chris Hoskins, 36, has strong links with Japan and spent six weeks in the country while researching its culture and cuisine before launching his business venture.

Luckily, his Japanese suppliers and associates, who are mainly from the Tokyo area, have been unaffected.

He said: “There was definitely some panic and anxiety in the first two days when it was difficult to make that link with friends and family because communication systems were not working.

“At the moment there is a lot of concern, particularly around the nuclear reactors.

“As much as everyone is relieved that they are through the worst, they are not sure whether the information they receive is really the real picture.

“The Japanese are very orderly, they want to get on with their lives and get back to normality as quickly as they can.”

If you would like to donate money to the Japanese disaster appeal, go to justgiving.com/oishibarking.

Tell us about your fundraising for the people of Japan. Leave a comment below, call the Post Newsdesk on 020 8477 3900 or email postnewsdesk@archant.co.uk