Save the Children will distribute emergency kits for children and families who have survived Typhoon Haiyan, including household and hygiene supplies, clean drinking water, cleaning items, temporary school tents and education materials. We will partner with local governments and other relief agencies to assess needs and provide assistance, with a special focus on affected children.
The destruction caused by Super Typhoon Haiyan in its rampage across the Philippines has been compared to that of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. While some police estimates of the death toll from Haiyan approach 10,000, the horrific destruction leave no doubt of the storm's incredible winds and surges of water. Some 4.3 million Filipinos are in need of assistance - many of them vulnerable children who need help to survive.
Save the Children has launched humanitarian relief for Filipino children and families. Our relief experts are on the scene, moving as quickly as conditions allow to assess children's needs and initiate the help they and their families require right now and for their recovery. We are also deploying additional relief experts to the Philippines to help support our planned large-scale relief and recovery operation.
Save the Children has been working in the Philippines since 1981, responding to dozens of emergencies across the country. Save the Children's emergency teams will provide lifesaving assistance in the aftermath of the typhoon and will provide special care and programs for children to help them cope with the enormity of their tragic losses.
