As stories emerge of children being separated from their parents after the explosion in Beirut, Save the Children is calling for the safety and wellbeing of children and their reunification with relatives to be a key part of the response.

Traumatic consequences of the explosion for children

Children lost their lives or were seriously injured in the explosion. Others lost parents and family members or were separated from them. After the explosion, the population was told that they would be temporarily unable to go outside because of the toxic gas emitted from the explosion site. In addition, injuries such as cuts and external bleeding are not being treated in the hospitals, as almost all hospitals in Beirut have reached their capacity.

That can be extremely traumatic for a child. It is vital at such times that children are kept safe and feel protected, that they have people they trust to talk to, and that a system is set up to reunify children with their parents or other family members. Such a system is complicated to manage, and Save the Children is ready to support this if needed.

People have started offering their houses to others who have become homeless in the blast and have lost everything. Save the Children has been in touch with vulnerable families it works with to see if they were harmed, and we stand ready to help where needed, to keep children safe, protected and fed.

According to reports in the media, around 300,000 people have been left homeless. That means well over 100,000 children have seen their homes destroyed and lost everything they had.

Jad Sakr Country Director of Save the Children in Beirut

The explosion could not have come at a worse time: during an economic collapse, just a day after a COVID-19 lockdown lifted in Beirut, and just before a new lockdown would have come into effect. Many people used this window of opportunity to go running, or just socialize and hang out at the seaside and escape their worries – very close to where the explosion happened.

Jad Sakr Länderdirektor von Save the Children im Libanon

Important questions about the explosion in Lebanon

Terrible events like these can have a deep impact on children: they have seen their houses destroyed, they may have lost family members or were injured themselves, and they were told they temporarily can’t go outside because of the toxic gas emanating from the blast scene. Injuries such as cuts and external bleeding are not being treated at hospitals because almost all Beirut’s health institutions have reached full capacity.

That can be extremely traumatic for a child. It is vital that these children are kept safe and protected, and that a system is set up to reunify children with their parents or other family members.

We are contacting all the communities we work with and the families of children engaged in our programmes, to make sure they are safe. We are also looking after our own staff; many live in Beirut and they, like the rest of the population, have been caught in this disaster.

Once the search and rescue operations have been completed, Save the Children will assess the scale of the damage and the impact the explosion had on the most vulnerable, including their immediate and most critical needs, including food, shelter, and psychosocial support. Many children will have had a potentially traumatising experience and will be left with haunting memories, and it will be vital to address that in the core of any response.

In the coming weeks, we will be providing food relief, personal hygiene items, and psychological first aid for children and caregivers. We will particularly focus on family tracing and reunification work, as children are reported to be separated from their loved ones among the chaos of the blast.

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