16 October 2009

THE Salvation Army in The Philippines – already responding to the worst floods for 40 years in the south of the country – is now extending its emergency relief operations to include the Northern Territories, following the return of Typhoon Pepeng (also known as Parma).

With much of the area still cut off through floods and landslides, local Salvationists responded quickly by distributing supplies of food and water.

Typhoon Pepeng struck the Northern Luzon region before doing a 'U-turn' and revisiting the region, bringing heavy rains to a far larger area than had initially been anticipated. It was necessary to open some of the local dams to prevent serious damage to them but this added to the flooding caused by the typhoon. The NDCC (National Disaster Coordinating Council) reported on 11 October that more than two and a quarter million people had been affected, with just over 100,000 people having to stay in 281 designated evacuation centres.

This is in addition to the 4.1 million people reported to have been affected by Tropical Storm Ondoy (known internationally as Ketsana) which struck Manila and the surrounding regions in late September. More than 700 people lost their lives in the two disasters.

In some places whole villages were engulfed by mudslides. Philippine and USA soldiers have combined with local emergency teams to try to clear roads and gain access to communities cut off by the floods but it has been difficult to gain an accurate picture of the damage caused.

Many Salvation Army corps (church) buildings were flooded but local Salvationists and volunteers battled to respond to the wider community as best they could. Major Alexander Genabe, Divisional Commander of Northern Luzon, reports: 'Corps officers responded to provide emergency services by coordinating with the local government officials in their own community. [Salvationists from] Asingan, Dagupan, Santa Barbara and Piaz Corps joined the team for rescue operations and comrades provided transport to bring people to evacuation areas and to higher grounds. Some opened their houses as a haven and provided food among the evacuees.'

With houses submerged in water and some people trapped on the rooftops of their homes, the situation was very difficult. Many officers and volunteers worked for up to 24 hours at a time to assist those affected, visiting local evacuation centres and offering support, joining teams distributing goods or operating feeding stations.

In many areas the water has begun to recede but much work remains to relieve the suffering being experienced by many and to begin to rebuild broken lives. Damage to crops is seen as a major cause for concern in the coming months.

Major Daryl Crowden of The Salvation Army's International Emergency Services is preparing to travel to the north of The Philippines to assess the situation. He will work with divisional and corps teams to develop a strategy for The Salvation Army’s ongoing response. Donations from around the world are being used to support the efforts of The Salvation Army in The Philippines at this very difficult time.

Latest figures released by NDCC showed the number of validated deaths from typhoon Pepeng is now 375, bringing the total number of confirmed deaths from the two typhoons to 712.
 

 

 

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