Philippines (MNN) — Needs are stacking up in the Philippines following Super Typhoon Haiyan’s departure.
At the end of last week, Super Typhoon Haiyan, known locally as “Yolanda,” departed the Philippine archipelago and marched toward the Vietnam coastline. The storm left behind widespread devastation, further compounding problems in places like Bohol–the center of a 7.2 magnitude earthquake in mid-October.
Jeff Palmer with Baptist Global Response says their ministry partners were meeting priority needs over the weekend, needs such as food, clean water, and temporary shelter. Now they’re tackling the next level of issues.
“Because of the surging waves and the several inches of rainfall that we dumped in a short time, you have a lot of water contamination and flooding into wells, things like that,” Palmer explains.
“In the next couple of weeks, we’ll probably move to…tin roofing dispersal to help folks get back into adequate housing.”
Pray that more people can be helped through BGR partners. Ask the Lord to protect Filipinos from typhoon aftereffects like landslides and flooding.
As Haiyan sped through the Philippines at speeds twice the normal rate of tropical storms, Palmer says the location of BGR partners led to an equally-speedy disaster response.
“We actually had some of our partners who were implementing development projects on-ground close by, so they were right in the middle of the typhoon itself,” says Palmer.
“They were able to hunker down because they were right in the middle of it themselves, and then [they were] able to get out and start to do some assessment in their local area and some initial response.”
Early intervention from the government helped stem the tide of potential destruction. Over 120,000 people were evacuated ahead of Haiyan’s arrival, and “war-like” preparations had military equipment such as helicopters, planes, and navy ships on standby.
“The Philippines get so many [storms] per year that they do good preparation, and this is usually the hardest-hit area,” states Palmer.
Working through local believers, BGR is providing more than physical relief. They’re also telling people about Jesus Christ, the only One who can overcome life’s storms.
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“We definitely would appreciate people partnering with us in prayer, and partnering with us in donations and gifts, to help us…come alongside those in need in the Philippines,” Palmer says.
