One year following Japan’s tragic earthquake and Pacific tsunami, the country is firmly on the path to recovery.
“Donations to the American Red Cross have helped hundreds of thousands of disaster survivors and are serving a critical role in recovery plans,” said President and CEO Gail McGovern. “Whether it’s offering emotional support to someone struggling with trauma, building much needed healthcare facilities, or providing appliances to a family moving into a temporary home, the Red Cross is helping the Japanese people look to the future.”Donations to the American Red Cross have helped the Japanese Red Cross:
- Provide more than 316,000 survivors with necessary appliances for their temporary housing, including refrigerators, washing machines and rice cookers.
- Support construction of four temporary hospitals, one permanent hospital and a community health clinic.
- Rebuild a Red Cross nursing school that will train specialists in disaster medical care
- Provide more than 87,000 people with health services through Japanese Red Cross mobile teams and temporary clinics.
- Comfort 14,000 people by counselors trained to deal with disaster-related trauma.
- Provide transportation and vaccinations for the elderly and educational support, temporary school gyms and play areas for children.
- Improve the disaster response capacity of the Japanese Red Cross, so critical to saving lives.
The American Red was one of the largest private, international contributors to the Japan earthquake and Pacific tsunami response, raising more than $312 million. One year later, virtually all of the funds have been spent. Because of these donations, the Japanese Red Cross was able to bring emergency comfort to those living in shelters and later able to provide the supplies and services needed to help them get back on their feet.
