Philippines disaster relief: a diary of devastation, loss and hope
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Version 0 of 1. I'm from Cagayan de Oro in Mindanao, and usually work in Manila, but I'm currently deployed in Cebu. I've been to a few of the areas affected by Haiyan and have seen the rawness of its impact. From the air, I saw people walking through the debris. Coconut and banana trees, the main source of income for many poor families, were either bent or broken. Many houses had collapsed and roofs torn away. The typhoon flattened so many villages, and the loss and destruction is difficult to bear. I'm proud to say that we Filipinos are resilient to disasters. But we've never before seen the likes of Haiyan – or Yolanda, as we call it here. Until now, I've found the aftermath of the "monster-typhoon" hard to process. I couldn't erase the first heartbreaking scene I saw on the TV, of survivors weeping as they cradled the bodies of their children who had drowned in the deluge. The storm swept away everything, even houses and tall buildings with strong walls came crashing to the ground. We still don't know the extent of the damage in some of the more remote areas of the archipelago as many communication lines are down. I've heard horrifying survival stories: children recounting how they fled for safety while metal sheets from roofs swirled overhead. Some recall hiding inside a cave, sobbing with fear. Parents can't hold back their tears when they recall how their family came so close to death. I'm not a stranger to these scenes of grief. I've been stationed in Mindanao for the past two years as part of the World Vision response to the aftermath of typhoon Washi (Sendong) and typhoon Bopha (Pablo). I was also there to cover the devastation inflicted by tropical storm Ketsana (Ondoy) in Metro Manila and typhoon Megi (Juan) in the northern part of Luzon. I'll never forget my first real typhoon experience during typhoon Fengshen (Frank) in Western Visayas five years ago. It's sad to say, but I think the impact of these disasters in my country is getting worse every year. Some of our staff who responded to the earthquake in Bohol left their families during the typhoon. They assumed their loved ones would be fine because we're used to climatic events here and know how to cope. But Haiyan was more fierce than we could have ever imagined. World Vision Philippines has been doing back-to-back relief response, from typhoon Habagat, the Zamboanga siege, Bohol earthquake, and now, Haiyan. There's little space to breathe and more sleepless nights. Although I find myself anxious about how to survive in the coming days, many others here still burst out laughing when our food supplies and hygiene kits arrive. They're just glad something has arrived to sustain them for a couple of weeks. Children are smiling again now that we've just started to put up out the first child-friendly spaces, and this eases my fatigue. Due to the devastation to buildings here, which we'd normally use for these spaces, they are simply large tents managed by our trained counsellors and containing some play materials. Among all the pain and loss, several groups and individuals have launched initiatives to raise funds and supplies for survivors. The generosity from the international community is overwhelming. So many volunteers are here, tirelessly packing up relief supplies. I'm thankful that Filipinos can still manage to smile and be grateful even in the most dire circumstance. I think we've come through the worst, and we can rebuild our lives. Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. |