Although Typhoon Hagupit – known as Ruby in the Philippines – is reported to have taken only a handful of lives, for thousands of people in the country, it was still a sort of repeat of Typhoon Haiyan, which had torn through the Philippines in November 2013, leaving more than 7,000 dead or missing. “It’s déjà vu, but not the same as last year with Haiyan,” a Tacloban resident Mariano Tan Jr told the BBC.
Students from six Jesuit universities in Asia recently spent three weeks dialoguing and working with the Xavier Ecoville community. Xavier Ecoville arose from the devastation wrought by Tropical Storm Sendong (Washi). After the storm, Xavier University together with the city government led the relocation and rehabilitation of affected families on a plot of land donated by Xavier University.
There is now an awareness that after typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) hit central Philippines on November 8, infrastructure broke down, and not just roads and bridges, but also communication channels, power, water, transportation. Economic structures where subsistence co-exists with poverty also broke down, and there is now the immediate challenge for people to build livable structures as their housing. Structuring a whole response of sustainable cities and villages as a reality, beyond an architectural print-out, is the challenge the country faces.
Three weeks after Typhoon Haiyan (“Yolanda” in the Philippines) wreaked widespread devastation on the Philippines, the survivors are slowly beginning to pick up the pieces.
The official death toll of 5,500 as of November 27 makes the typhoon the deadliest storm in the country’s history – and the number of dead is expected to increase.
The Philippine Jesuits are joining forces with massive relief efforts to help victims of Typhoon Haiyan (local name Yolanda), the most powerful typhoon ever recorded in the Philippines. The scale of desperation and devastation is immense.
A team from the Jesuit social arm, Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan (Church in service of the Nation – SLB) sails today on a navy boat for the devastated areas of Leyte and Samar together with a Caritas Manila team and many supplies.
A call has gone out for donations for the relief efforts for survivors of the 7.2 magnitude earthquake that struck in Central Visayas earlier this month, affecting more than 3 million people. The refrain, “Tabang Visayas” (Help Visayas), is being used by Jesuit work Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan (SLB) and Ateneo de Cebu as they work together to respond to cries for assistance from the affected communities in Bohol. Donations will be used to provide for the immediate needs of the least and unreachable communities in the province of Bohol.
Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan (SLB), the socio-political arm of the Jesuits in the Philippines, and Ateneo de Davao University recently organized a relief and recovery programme for survivors of Typhoon Pablo, known internationally as Typhoon Bopha. Held on January 8 and 9, the relief programme, Task Force Noah: Pablo, served 1,000 affected families in Compostela Valley. The team was also able to get support from the Tribal Council of each municipality.
EAPI sets up Centre for Effective Mission
The East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) is setting up a new unit to provide consultancy and on-site training programmes for local churches in Asia Pacific. The new Center for Effective Mission will complement EAPI’s current formation and educational programmes in Manila, Philippines.
The Archbishop of Cagayan de Oro in northern Mindanao, Philippines, Antonio J Ledesma SJ, has called for environmental protection and good governance to be part of the post disaster response in Mindanao. He did so in his homily at the opening of a forum for Bishops and Diocesan Clergy of Mindanao on the challenges of Tropical Storm Washi for Mindanao in February.
Almost two months after Tropical Storm Washi hit, the devastation it wreaked is “old news” for the media, but for the many people, the devastation it caused is very much a reality from which they are trying valiantly to recover.
Housing and the loss of income are major issues. In the villages of Ponod and Pantar, the villagers have found a way to derive an income from the debris.