Half of States Lack Disaster Plans for Schools, Day Care

More than half of the states and the District of Columbia do not require schools or day care centers to meet minimum standards to protect children during major emergencies, according to a new report.

Save the Children, a non-governmental disaster relief organization focused on children, found that 17 states don't require evacuation plans in day care centers. The report also found that numerous other states don't require specific plans for reuniting children with their parents after an emergency.

Other states don't require plans for helping children with special needs, which includes infants and toddlers.

Four states — Iowa, Idaho, Kansas and Michigan — also do not require K-12 schools to have emergency plans for multiple hazards, such as school shootings or natural disasters, the report found.