Westport, Conn. (February 7, 2007) — Save the Children, a humanitarian agency that responds to major emergencies and works to improve the lives of children around the world and in the United States, is deploying a team of disaster experts to assist children and families affected by the devastating tornadoes that have left more than 50 people dead in Tennessee, Arkansas and the Southeast. 

Save the Children emergency response teams will begin arriving in Tennessee later today at the request of Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen, who has long supported Save the Children's literacy and fitness programs in rural Tennessee schools.

"We welcome the governor's request and appreciate his recognition of the importance of children's needs following this tragedy," said Mark K. Shriver, Save the Children's vice president for U.S. programs.

"One thing we have learned from past disasters, such as Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast and the devastating wildfires in California last fall, is that the needs of children are not always a top priority in emergency situations. When children are displaced from their homes and schools and their routines are disrupted, they suffer in unique ways, and sometimes they lose faith in grown-ups' ability to protect them. Their safety and well-being are at risk, and Governor Bredesen recognizes this."

Save the Children, which responded to more than 20 emergencies around the world over the last year, works with the American Red Cross and other disaster-response organizations to ensure that the particular needs of children are addressed during U.S. disasters.

Save the Children is prepared to assist local and state agencies in establishing Safe Spaces for children in evacuation centers and at community sites where families register for recovery assistance. Save the Children also stands ready to partner with schools to support children's recovery and to provide individual care kits for children affected by the disaster.

The Save the Children experts traveling to Tennessee will support this effort, assess protection issues and identify other needs of children impacted by the storms. Teams initially will be sent to central and western parts of the state where the tornadoes did the most damage.

"Returning children to their normal routines are a proven way to help them recover from loss and from the frightening images of destruction they have experienced firsthand or they may have seen on television," said Shriver. "It also allows parents the time they need to get their lives back together."

Save the Children currently implements long-term literacy and nutrition programs in rural communities in Tennessee and Arkansas as part of its national program to assist rural children in need.  The agency also advocates at a state and national level to raise the priority of priority of children's needs in disaster planning, response and recovery.

Save the Children works in more than 50 countries, including the United States, and serves more than 41 million children and 25 million adults working to save and improve children's lives, including parents, community members, local organizations and government agencies. The agency works in 12 counties in Tennessee. 

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