North Korea has asked South Korean civic groups to provide construction materials to help with rehabilitation works in the wake of the Ryongchon rail blast.

An official of "Good Neighbors," a private South Korean charity organization, said Sunday that during his stay in the communist state, the North had asked for assistance in getting roofing materials. He said that Pyongyang is now focusing its efforts on rebuilding and restoring Ryongchon, the site of the deadly train blast.

The official also said the North had expressed its deep appreciation for the South's relief support.

Last Friday, South Korea delivered relief supplies worth 470,000 U.S. dollars to the North on a chartered cargo flight - the first such airlift since the division of the Korean Peninsula.

Seoul is scheduled to deliver an additional 25 million-dollar relief package in separate shipments.

Total relief aid from Seoul would thus come to 26 million dollars, nearly four times the combined 6.6 million dollars in aid provided or pledged by the rest of the world.