Christian Aid partners are responding to the needs of people who have been affected by Typhoon Fengshen, which hit the Philippines last weekend (21 June).
Even before the typhoon hit, our partners were monitoring its course and preparing communities as best they could.
According to official figures (the National Disaster Coordinating Council), the death toll has now risen to at least 629 dead, with more than 900 missing and 2. 4 million displaced.
The typhoon hit landfall three times, which means that unlike after most typhoons, the damage is spread out across parts of the country that are quite distant from each other.
Christian Aid partners are mainly working on Sibuyan Island, in Iloilo province, in Leyte province and on Dinahican Island in Infanta, Quezon province.
Partners are currently prioritising the following measures:
helping communities at the evacuation centres and other temporary shelters,
providing food and non food items (such as rice, blankets and mosquito nets),
organising distribution centres and the distribution of relief goods and,
recruiting staff and volunteers.
Sibuyan Island
Around 1,500 families on Sibuyan Island are now living in evacuation centres due to widespread flooding caused by the typhoon.
Three-quarters of the island’s population of around 56,000 has been affected. Between 90-95% of coastal houses have been washed away.
To make things worse, this small, remote island between the Luzon mainland and the Visayas region is not reachable by commercial flights, while commercial transportation by sea is still suspended after the typhoon.
There is an urgent need for basic items such as food, blankets and medicines. Christian Aid has now sent staff and the first batch of 500 relief packs to Sibuyan island by ship and over the longer term it plans to provide shelter for those made homeless by the typhoon. Christian Aid is targeting 1,500 families for relief.
The Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center (LRC) – our local partner - is joining up with the Sibuyan Island Sentinels League for the Environment (Sibuyan ISLE) to respond to the needs of local people.
Iloilo
The central province of Iloilo has suffered unprecedented flooding. Our partner, Panay Rural Development Center Incorporated, is currently assessing the needs of local farmers. The initial need is for food, water and seeds so farmers can replant.
Christian Aid will be targeting 2,282 families for relief in Iloilo. In Iloilo city, many hospitals, rice warehouses and schools are still flooded, which is making it more difficult to provide food and health services to those affected by the typhoon.
Leyte
Flooding and landslides have been reported in towns in the south of Leyte – a province in the Eastern Visayas region of the Philippines. Our partner, Philnet-Rural Development Institute, is monitoring the situation in the municipality of Ormoc.
Dinahican, Infanta
Typhoon Fengshen destroyed houses in Dinahican, a small island just off the coast of Infanta. Our partner, Social Action Centre (SAC) Infanta, has requested assistance to rebuild 200 houses for affected households.
It will also be working in Infanta itself, and in Ungos village and Real town, also in Quezon province - this is for food and non-food relief and for longer term housing and livelihood projects.
Infanta is the site of a major disaster in 2004 when a typhoon triggered a landslide that covered big portions of three municipalities. Christian Aid assisted the SAC Infanta to respond to this disaster and has since helped the communities reduce the impact of future disasters.
Disaster training pays off
Christian Aid partners are sending three aid workers as part of a rapid response assessment team to support local organisations on Sibuyan island in their initial assessment and planning phase for the relief operation.
Christian Aid and its partners have been organising emergency training and disaster preparedness in the Philippines for several years. The formation of the rapid response assessment team has come out of that work.