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Bangladesh Cyclone Sidr

Our emergency response teams are helping 250,000 families in Bangladesh recover from the massive cyclone that struck on 15 November 2007.

On November 15, 2007 Cyclone Sidr struck the southern coast of Bangladesh, killing more than 3,000 people, destroying more than 300,000 homes and closing thousands of schools in what was already one of the poorest districts in Bangladesh.

The cyclone destroyed schools and in the months after the cyclone children faced an increased risk of injury, exploitation and no education.

Save the Children first met Nazma (12), who lives with her family in Pathergatha, an area on the southern coast of Bangladesh near the Bay of Bengal, a few weeks after Sidr struck. Like many other children, she spent several days after the disaster without shelter and saw her school and family's belongings completely destroyed.

A young boy carries home an emergency kit. In the first days after the cyclone, we distributed food, including rice, potatoes, and high-energy biscuits, and safe drinking water. We also gave hygiene kits containing soap, toothpaste, laundry detergent and other items which enabled families to remain clean.

In the three months following the cyclone, Save the Children distributed relief goods, including plastic sheeting, blankets, water containers, and cooking and eating utensils which benefited over 42,000 families. 5,000 families were provided with shelter kits containing iron sheets, basic tools and a small cash stipend.

Golbanu, age 32, with her son Shakib outside their shelter which was constructed with the support of Save the Children. She explains: "before we received help from Save the Children we were living outside with nothing to protect us. Now we have been able to build a shelter and have blankets to stay warm at night. Because of this help, my daughter, born two months after the cyclone, was born into a warm, clean place."

Children play a game at a child friendly space. We opened 190 child friendly spaces where over 20,000 children could safely gather and play while their parents worked on salvaging items left behind by the cyclone, clearing debris, building shelters and accessing relief.

Six months after the cyclone, Nazma's life, in many ways, has returned to normal. For four months, Nazma and her younger brother attended a safe play space supported by Save the Children. "We learned to act and sing there, and could play with our friends, which helped us forget about our problems." explains Nazma. "Before that, we were just wandering around and there was an empty feeling because our schools were gone and we had no homes to be in."

17 year Moriam with her neighbours at a water tank built by Save the Children. As risk for disease in Barisal is high, Save the Children quickly began repairing and replacing destroyed latrines and water sources, such as village tubewells. We've already provided 200,000 families with long-term access to drinking water by repairing or replacing local water sources, including tubewells and pond sand filters.

Fatema, a water and sanitation field facilitator, instructs Limon and Nayeem, both age eight, on proper hand washing techniques at a school-based awareness session. We have built or repaired 9,000 school and household latrines. Each school latrine includes separate sections for boys and girls, as well as nearby water connections for handwashing. We're also conducting hygiene awareness sessions for women and school children.

Mahamuda, a government healthcare worker, gives a vaccination to Abdullah. By training community health volunteers to provide medical advice and distributing medicines to health facilities, we helped more than 80,000 families prevent and treat diarrhoea and infectious diseases.

Jaynob, a Save the Children field officer, advises Jahanara about planting grass alongside a road, as part of a Save the Children cash-for-work programme. We are paying 1,500 community members to repair school grounds and roads. We are also helping families gain longer term access to food by distributing vegetable seeds for household gardens, small fish for household ponds and cows which can provide milk for consumption and sale.

Surma, age 12, writes on the blackboard.

Save the Children is now repairing the most affected schools, training teachers to help children cope with the changed situation and stay safe during future disasters, and providing teaching and learning materials to replace what was lost or destroyed during the cyclone.

Watch videos on Cyclone Sidr

How We're Responding

We've helped more than 250,000 families by providing:

• More than 175,000 families with food, including rice, pulses, salt and cooking oil
• Over 24,000 families with household items, including jerry cans, plastic sheeting, kitchenware and clothing
• More than 37,000 families with blankets
• Over 11,000 families with water purification tablets
• More than 3,200 families with shelter kits, including corrugated iron sheeting, nails and screws
• Over 2.6 million packets of high energy biscuits and more than 11.7 million litres of fresh water from water purification plants

Helping families become self-sufficient

The long-term impacts of the cyclone will be felt for many years:

• We're working with affected communities to help rebuild their ways of earning a living.
• We're running a cash-for-work project benefiting 1,200 people, including around 400 women.
• We're also working to help reduce the impact of future natural disasters. Risk reduction projects help 'at risk' communities become better informed about how to prepare for natural disasters before they strike.

How you can help

• Call our emergency appeal line and donate: 0800 8148 148
• Donate online to our Bangladesh appeal 
• Donate items to your local Save the Children shop or volunteer at one. Whether it's just two hours or a whole day, every minute of your time will help.

Davina appeals for help

TV presenter Davina McCall says,"The cyclone has flattened more than a quarter of a million homes and the families who have survived have been left with nothing. I am supporting Save the Children's appeal to help families recover and rebuild their lives."

Personal stories of families hit by Cyclone Sidr

• After the cyclone - Shahana's story from Bangladesh
• Nazma's story - Nazma, 12, rode out Cyclone Sidr in a shelter
• Coping with the storm - A mother and her four children struggle to survive Cyclone Sidr
• David's blog - Our Emergencies Adviser  writes from Bangladesh
• Photo story from Bangladesh

What you can do

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