An Oxford woman on holiday in Thailand was so moved by the aftermath of the Boxing Day tsunami she traded her bikini for a hammer -- and helped build a dormitory and classroom at an orphanage.

Sue Norris Housekeeper Sue Norris, 45, who works and lives at the Oxford Spires Four Pillars Hotel, in Abingdon Road, was in Phuket visiting her brother Alan Lewis, 52, and his Thai wife Joom.

Ms Norris had originally intended to spend her two-week trip relaxing by the pool with a good book.

But when her brother told her about his plans to help at a school, she felt compelled to lend a hand. She said: "My brother apologised to me and said he and Joom would have to leave me on my own for a week. I decided to go with them and it was the best thing I have ever done."

The group, along with two Thai volunteers, travelled by car to a village on the outskirts of Phuket to work on the school.

While there, they installed wooden floors and canvas sides to two steel frames, which will be used as a dormitory and extra classroom.

Ms Norris said: "I was shocked that six months down the line they are still desperate for help.

"Everybody has lost somebody in and around Phuket. You can almost smell death in the air."

Ms Norris said the island was scattered with reminders of the tsunami. She added: "A lot of the restaurants are boarded up or going out of business because no-one will eat the fish, as they believe they could be feeding on the victims washed out to sea. They have lost their families and now they're not getting the tourism."

Ms Norris is now working hard to help more people in Phuket -- and has already managed to persuade the chief executive of the hotel group, Charles Holmes, to donate more than 700 blankets from the five Four Pillars hotels in Oxfordshire.

She said: "We've just changed all the bedding in the bedrooms over from blankets to duvets.

"I emailed the director and asked for the blankets, and he said yes."

She said her employers had been particularly supportive, including her general manager Wendy Procter. She added: "Wendy has told me if I can get enough cash together she will free me up to go out there again."

Ms Norris is now appealing for a company to recycle the blankets to raise money.

To help the fundraising appeal, call 01865 324324.