Reunite Lost, Displaced Children with Parents and Relatives

by Darwin Campbell
African-AmericanNews&Issues

Her name is Tyler Unknown.
She stands with the most innocent look and one of the most sweet and beautiful smiles that God could ever paste on the face of a child.
The good news is her whereabouts are known, but the bad news is that she was separated from family and relatives during Hurricane Katrina.
Tyler was found alone in the Convention Center in New Orleans, Louisiana on August 31, 2005. Her date of birth, last name and weight are unknown. Her relatives, caretakers are also unknown, but she is believed to be 2 years old.
Yet, Tyler, like many others, is a girl without parents, a home and facing an uncertain future unless someone recognizes her on the Website for National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC).
She is one lonely face in a sea of 2,892 displaced children searching and hoping to identified and reunited after one of the worst natural disasters in our nation’s history.
Her case is one of many that have officials stepping up efforts to locate the families of displaced children in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
“At the request of the U.S. Department of Justice, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) has expanded our Katrina Missing Persons Hotline to include potentially fractured families as result of Hurricane Rita,” said Ernie Allen, President and CEO of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). “We will accept reports from the parents, legal guardians, or immediate family of missing/displaced children and any reports of missing adults from immediate family members and refer the cases to the National Center for Missing Adults.”
According to latest data from the NCMEC, of the 4,309 cases reported to the agency, nearly 3000 are still missing or displaced by the storm which devastated parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Only 1,470 have been recovered and reunited with family members.
“We believe many of these children will be eventually identified and reunited with family members,” said Lisa Cullen, MCMEC communications spokeswoman. “It is critical that we find these displaced children as soon as possible and work to bring these fractured families back together again.”
According to Cullen, one of the most difficult challenges in overcoming the sparse information used to identify each child.
In most cases, officials are working only with a photograph, first names or limited information on where the child lived or date reported missing.
Some children were also found, but were unable to provide enough information about themselves or their parents.
“We have received thousands of calls and hope people continue to help us find them,” Cullen said. “It is important to remember that these are children looking for parents and relatives as a result of the displacement caused by the hurricane. They are not been abducted or are “missing” in the normal sense of operations.”
So far, 14 more displaced children cases have been generated as a result of Hurricane Rita. The latest hotlines reported that one child was found as a result of the searches.
Dozens of photographs of these displaced children are also posted on the Web site of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at www.misssingkids.com.
Also pictured are resolved cases where children have been identified and found safe with in a shelter, with a caregiver or relative.
Cullen added that the agency is also working in conjunction with the Texas Department of Public Safety Missing Persons Clearinghouse to provide assistance as requested.
If you cannot reach your local law enforcement concerning a missing family member, you can contact our Katrina/Rita Missing Person’s Hotline, 1-888-544-5475, which operates from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 midnight EST, seven days/week.