Cyclone Sidr has left behind a trail of devastation affecting the lives of at least 14 million people, and leaving a path of damaged houses, uprooted trees, destroyed schools, flattened crops, dead livestock, contaminated streams and ponds, and disrupted road links.

The storm has left more than 3,000 dead – a number that rises with every passing hour.

Of the total lives lost to Sidr, 40 per cent are believed to be children. Many of the children that have survived are now orphans. Children under five, pregnant women, new mothers and the elderly are the people most seriously affected.

The number of victims is expected to rise dramatically as rescue crews and aid workers make their way to remote areas and islands. Hope is fading for finding survivors from missing ships, trawlers and fishing boats that were swept away. Thousands of people are still living in the open with no food, drinking water or medicine. The threat of disease outbreak is rising.

Plan is on the ground, actively working to ease the pain for children and their families in Bangladesh. Plan teams will help 50,000 people, including women and children living in Barisal, Barguna and Patuakhali districts, which faced the eye of the storm when it hit.

Plan will be distributing food and other items such as:

• Medicine
• Household kits (including plastic sheeting)
• Blankets
• Soap
• Kitchen equipment and utensils
• Water purification tablets
• Hygiene items
• Zinc sheeting, timber and construction materials for shelter.

Plan will also be mobilizing community members to dig temporary sanitation facilities, and Plan will begin psychosocial support training for school teachers to ensure that children are supported in this difficult time. Throughout all of this, Plan will continue coordinating with other partners to have the greatest impact on the children, families and communities of Bangladesh.

Plan does not have any active programs in the areas directly affected by the cyclone. Therefore, all sponsored children are presumed to be safe.

We will continue to update this site as more information becomes available.

Make a donation

Plan is accepting donations to help provide emergency relief and address recovery needs in the coming days and weeks.

Please call 13 PLAN (13 7526) to donate.