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EMERGENCY SUPPORT FOR IRANIAN QUAKE

Following the devastating earthquake that hit the city of Bam in southeast Iran on Friday, December 26, UNICEF has dispatched urgently needed medical and shelter supplies to the stricken region. Working in close cooperation with partners in Iran, UNICEF has sent 72 emergency health and essential drug kits containing antibiotics, painkillers, syringes, and other equipment to help health workers on the ground establish small medical clinics. Each kit contains enough supplies to cover the emergency health needs of 10,000 people for up to three months. The UNICEF consignment also includes winter tents and plastic sheeting.

Based on experience from previous earthquakes, UNICEF fears for the health of children in the immediate aftermath of disasters such as the one that struck Bam. In addition to injuries directly resulting from a quake, the breakdown of basic sanitation and supply of clean water �" along with infection risks from decomposing bodies and seasonally low nighttime temperatures �" can lead to outbreaks of disease including diarrhea and acute respiratory infection. The provision of drugs and health supplies has an immediate, and long lasting, impact on securing the health of families in the first days following an earthquake."

Time is of the essence at this stage," said Kari Egge, the UNICEF Representative in Iran. "While the urgent search for survivors continues, it is equally urgent to care for the thousands of children left homeless by this devastating quake. Right now people are living on the streets, and it's very cold at night. The children are very vulnerable."

If you want to support the work of UNICEF in aiding the Iranian earthquake victims or in their other work with children and famiies around the world, go to: http://mail.ccie.com/go/eed/0086

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