Written By Rick Stambaugh FGGAM News
A full week after Typhoon Haiyan hit the Philippine Islands, the international aid effort is still struggling to provide the aid necessary to this devastated area.
Blocked roads, clogged airports, debris & dead bodies are severely hampering the efforts of aid personnel. The U.S. military is taking a lead in efforts, sending thousands of troops, scores of aircraft and ships along with tons of equipment and supplies. Bodies still lie in the streets as rescuers try to evacuate devastated communities throughout the country. Many times, bodies are ignored in order to attempt to help survivors first. The Philippine National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council confirmed 3,633 deaths as of Saturday. The official numbers include 1,179 missing and 12,487 injured. Officials said some people may have been swept out to sea and their bodies lost after a tsunami-like wall of seawater slammed into coastal areas.
“We are very, very worried about millions of children,” U.N. Children’s Fund spokesman Marixie Mercado told reporters in Geneva on Friday. While the Red Cross estimates put the preliminary number of missing at 25,000 Friday; that could include people who have since been located.
Widespread, severe damage, communication failure, and transportation problems have paralyzed Tacloban, the Leyte island’s main city. Hundreds of international aid workers have created makeshift hospitals and trucked in supplies, while helicopters from a U.S. aircraft carrier brought medicine and water to remote areas. The U.S. military is sending roughly 1,000 more troops, along with additional ships and aircraft, to join a massive effort to assist typhoon victims in the Philippines — a mission one Philippine military official on Friday called a “game changer.” The U.S. military — looking to both help an ally and show its commitment to remaining the leading power in the Pacific amid the rise of China — has been extremely fast in responding to the disaster. About a half dozen countries — including Japan, Indonesia, and Singapore — have offered military assistance to Manila, and many more have sent supplies. Chinese troops, however, have been prominently absent, in large part because of a territorial spat between the two nations. According to Lt. Col. Rodney Legowski, the first U.S. Marines arrived in the Philippines in response to the disaster within six hours, and began flying supplies to affected areas less than 18 hours after that. By Friday, there were 400 Marines in the country. The USS George Washington aircraft carrier and its battle group are also in place off the hard-hit islands of Leyte and Samar— carrying 5,000 crew and more than 80 aircraft including 21 additional helicopters which are extremely effective in this type of operation. So far, the U.S. military has moved 190 tons of supplies and flown nearly 200 sorties. “Having the U.S. military here is a game changer,” said Col. Miguel Okol, a spokesman for the Philippine air force. “For countries that we don’t have these kinds of relationships with, it can take a while to get help. But with the U.S., it’s immediate.” With roughly 600,000 people displaced by the typhoon and millions still in need of aid, the Marines said in a statement Thursday that about 900 more Marines based on Okinawa, Japan, were to arrive early next week aboard two U.S. Navy amphibious ships.A Norwegian merchant navy training vessel arrived at Tacloban Friday with goods from the U.N. World Food Program, including 40 tons of rice, medical equipment and 6,200 body bags. The British Navy also has an aircraft carrier with even more helicopters along with another naval vessel are in route to the area. The Israely Defense Force who have brought in aid personnel, supplies and a medical team including a field hospital are on site providing much needed assistance.
As reported by FGGAM by Pastor Dewey, the first baby born at the Israeli Defense Forces field hospital in the Philippines was delivered safely on Friday. The mother named the boy Israel. To see the Pastors report: https://fggam.org/shine-your-light-for-jesus-christ/
A U.N. official said in a guarded compliment many countries had come forward to help. “The response from the international community has not been overwhelming compared to the magnitude of the disaster, but it has been very generous so far,” Jens Laerke of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs told reporters in Geneva.
As boxes of aid were unloaded at Tacloban’s badly damaged airport, more than a thousand people lined up for hours, hoping to evacuate. Nearly a million people displaced by the storm lined up for food and water at an evacuee processing center at Mactan Air Base in Cebu, the country’s second-biggest city. But amid the desperation, a spirit of resilience was clearly evident as the residents of Guiuan and other battered towns started rebuilding their lives and those of their neighbors — with or without help from their government or a foreign aid groups. Dionesio de la Cruz has already built a temporary shelter out of the remains of his house. “We’re on our own, so we have to do this on our own,” the 40-year-old said as his wife and mother slept on a nearby table. “We’re not expecting anybody to come and help us.” Residents hauled debris into piles in the streets and set them on fire. Others were at work making frames for temporary homes. In one neighborhood, dozens of people crowded around a mobile generator, where countless cords snaked across the dirt and into power strips. Residents plugged in mobile phones, tablets and flashlights, hoping for a precious gulp of electricity, even though cell coverage remained spotty. Back in the town of Guiuan, about 100 miles east of Tacloban, other signs of life emerged from the debris. One man was selling skewers of meat, a couple of kiosks are open selling soda and soaps. In Tacloban, there were also some signs a battered population was beginning to get back on its feet –even as trucks carrying corpses drove through its streets on the way to a mass grave. The ornate tiled floor of a still-standing church was covered in mud as sunlight poured in through holes in the wind-peeled ceilings. Inside, people prayed while others swept dirt from the pews.
While the situation is starting to improve, although only slightly so far, I ASK FOR ALL TO PRAY FOR THESE FOLKS in their time of need!
