UNICEF Emergency Assistance to the Child Victims of the FloodsUNICEF Sends Emergency Assistance to the Child Victims of the Floods On Saturday, August 9, 2008, UNICEF Romania will deliver the first emergency kits to the children in the areas affected by the July floods. To begin with, over 1,000 packages with personal hygiene items, clothing, shoes and toys will be distributed in the most affected communities: Saucesti, Buhoci, Tamaşi and Letea Veche (Bacau County) and Tamaseni (Neamt County). The packages, with a total value of over Euro 35.000, include products donated by Amway and items purchased with funds raised during the telethon organized by Realitatea TV and UNICEF as part of the “Romania Takes Roots” Campaign. The packages were assembled and will be distributed with the help of volunteers from Orange Romania. The Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reform will also assist in the distribution of the supplies. In the weeks to come, UNICEF will continue to distribute emergency supplies in the other affected communities.
On August 6, the UNICEF representative in Romania, Edmond McLoughney and Programme Specialist Voica Pop accompanied Cabinet Minister Cristian David on a monitoring visit to Suceava and Botoşani counties. The Minister and the UNICEF officials met with local authorities and flood victims to evaluate the current situation. “I visited villages in the affected areas and I was struck by the situation of the children. The world they had known and had felt safe in collapsed around them in just a few minutes. They have no clothes, no toys, they don’t have anything left. It is now that we need to help them rebuild their universe and regain belief that everything will be all right again”, declared the UNICEF Representative in Romania.
The authorities responded promptly to the emergency situation in North-Eastern Romania and the emergency relief actions of UNICEF will complement the measures of the Government and will focus mainly on the children. UNICEF will support the children affected by floods and their families, especially in the areas of health, education and child protection.
“Romania Takes Roots” campaign will continue for a month. In this period, the phone lines and the SMS number will remain open for donations. People can donate by calling the Romtelecom numbers: 0900.900.120 (Euro 10/call) and 0900.900.125 (Euro 5/call), by sending an SMS to the short number 879 (Euro 2/sms in the networks of Orange and Vodafone and Euro2/sms + VAT in the Cosmote network) or directly to the UNICEF account open with BRD.
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