DisasterRelief.org An earthquake rumbles through your area, shattering windows, knocking down bookcases, sending you and your colleagues fleeing for the relative safety of the streets. Every day, millions of Americans depend on daycare centers to look after their children while they work. And while they may have taken great pains to ensure that their daycare providers are licensed, have ample emergency exits, fire extinguishers, safety training and so forth, few probably ever considered whether the center is safe from natural disasters.
Children are among the most vulnerable populations to natural disasters.
There is ample justification for the program. Although it's unclear how many children die in disaster-related events each year, unintentional childhood injury is the number one killer of children ages 14 and under, according to the National Safe Kids Campaign. Under the IBHS program, volunteers from the insurance industry will work with childcare centers nationwide to implement nonstructural safety measures to prevent minor mishaps and help the centers better withstand the effects of disasters. For example, IBHS will apply a safety film on windows to keep glass from showering the center if windows shatter during a hurricane or earthquake. Each year, disasters orphan thousands of children around the world.