The Prince of Wales called for change after victims of the Manchester Arena terror attack were left without access to mental health care and said survivors “must have their voices heard.”
At the conclusion of an Ariana Grande concert on May 22, 2017, suicide bomber Salman Abedi detonated his device in the Manchester Arena’s foyer, killing 22 people and injuring hundreds more.
More than 200 juvenile survivors who were under the age of 18 at the time of the attack and some of them sustained bodily injuries in the bombing participated in the study for the report.
In spite of the fact that 93 percent of young survivors felt they required support in the days and weeks following the assault, only 70 percent and 31 percent, respectively, received professional assistance.
According to study, some of the professional assistance provided by teachers, counselors, and doctors was essential to survivors, while some of it unintentionally caused further suffering.
Some young people also believed that because of their age, adults in positions of care rejected their thoughts and ideas and did not validate their experiences.
Prince William, patron of the National Emergencies Trust, commented on the research after learning that almost a third of the child bombing survivors had not gotten any professional care, saying that “we must listen to their stories now” in order to “learn for the future.”
According to the report, Bee the Difference, 75% of children and teenagers who were impacted by the 2017 terror attack suffered psychological harm as a result of what transpired.
However, 29% report that they haven’t had any professional help in the six years since, and 40% of them claim that it was never provided to them.
‘This research makes clear that young people who have suffered the horror of terrorism have requirements particular to age,’ Prince William responded.
“These are minds that need the room to speak up and have their emotions recognized.”
“In order to learn for the future, we must hear their stories now.” I’m eager to watch the transformation it brings about.
The National Emergencies Trust, a UK disaster response organization, researchers at Lancaster University, and teenage survivors of the arena attack collaborated on the Bee The Difference report, which was unveiled on Monday.
‘The instructor advised me I should embrace the attack as a positive experience, that thus ‘hardship’ would make me a stronger person,’ one victim said in a statement to researchers.
He claimed that nowadays, few young people go through hardship. I left because I thought this was completely inappropriate.
One victim, who lost his spouse in the attack, claims that the lack of emotional support following the catastrophe left him feeling abandoned.
Paul Price, 55, and his partner Elaine McIver, 43, were waiting outside the Ariana Grande event for their daughter Gabrielle, 13, and her friend.
Salman Abedi, a 22-year-old suicide bomber, exploded his homemade bomb, killing 22 people, including Mrs. McIver. She was stabbed in the chest and died instantaneously.
In the attack, Mr. Price suffered a number of wounds, including serious burns, shattered bones, hearing loss, and imbedded shrapnel that is still lodged in his groin, pelvis, and back.
He was hospitalized for little over eight months, has undergone roughly 55 operations since the explosion, and will likely require other surgeries in the future.
