Catholics In Philippines Turn To Church To Cope With Typhoon

by Jason Beaubien

November 18, 2013 3:31 AM

Listen to the story
3 min 40 sec

A Filipino woman wipes tears from her eyes while praying at the morning Mass at Santo Nino church, which was damaged by Typhoon Haiyan in Tacloban, Philippines on Sunday. Churches in the area have been serving double duty even after being severely damaged not only for daily masses but serving as refugee centers.
David Gilkey/NPR

Across the ravaged center of the Philippines on Sunday, people flocked to mass, often in churches that had been severely damaged or destroyed by Typhoon Haiyan.

In many villages in Leyte Province, the only structure that survived the storm was the church. Spires and statues of angels look out over fields of smashed houses and twisted typhoon debris.

In Tacloban, the typhoon ripped the roof off the once-stately Santo Nino Catholic Church. There's still mud in amongst the pews and one of the large stained glass windows hangs precariously from its frame above the congregation. Sparrows flit in and out of the broken the windows.

A Filipino man wipes the tears from his eyes next to a statue of Jesus on Sunday before morning Mass at Santo Nino church, which was damaged by Typhoon Haiyan in Tacloban, Philippines.
David Gilkey/NPR

There's no electricity throughout this region and the energy minister says it might take a year to get power restored in the province. The priest used a battery powered loudspeaker to lead the mass.

Parishioners say in the days after one of the world's most powerful storms crashed into Tacloban, this church has been a focal point for the community, a place to be together and to mourn.

"I came here right after the typhoon and everyone was crying seeing the church this way. It's really hard," says Nancy Callega. She says despite the damage to the church, her faith as a Catholic has helped her let go, to cope and face the destruction that surrounds everyone here.

"I really trust in God," she says. "We cannot rely on our concrete houses and our powers, it's nothing compared to God's help through prayers."

The Philippines is a predominantly Catholic country, and it is one of the largest Catholic populations in the world. Only in Brazil and Mexico does the church have more followers.

The priest on Sunday told the suffering here to take strength from the suffering of Jesus. This is a place where many people have not only lost all their worldly goods, many have also watched family members get crushed or washed out to sea.

Terasita Mazeda, who works for the local municipal government, says she came to church on this morning to thank God that she survived the typhoon.

"We just go to church and say prayer for Thanksgiving that we were still alive," Mazeda says. "Without our material things it's not important. Most important is we are still alive."

That's also an idea echoed by Wenny Valdesco. She's part of the Catholic Women's League and does the collection during mass each Sunday. She says at a time like this the church is a symbol of what's important, and that material things are secondary.

"And it is reminding us that when we are in our death bed, everything is abandoned," Valdesco says. "And in devastation we have to save ourselves if it is God's will that we have to survive."

Amidst the wreckage and the mud and the emotional pain, these women say the church remains for them something positive and something beautiful and a place to come together as a community.


Source
.

#YolandaPH (Haiyan): Filipinos worldwide heed call to action

#BalikBayan


by Michaela Romulo
Posted on 11/12/2013 5:12 PM | Updated 11/13/2013 1:21 AM



MANILA, Philippines – Filipinos worldwide were shocked by the devastation left behind by Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan). (Read: Aid official: Destruction like the aftermath of a tsunami)

Communication lines broke down in parts of Leyte and Samar. Families in other parts of the Philippines and even outside the country have been unable to communicate with their loved ones in the devestated areas. The waiting game has been agonizing. (READ: #YolandaPH person finder: Looking for friends, relatives, affected areas?)

Relief efforts began as soon as the storm left. The eyes of the world media are on the Philippines. In different areas of the affected region, government agencies, businesses, and NGOs, are trying to focus their efforts on providing relief for the millions left without food, water and proper medicine.

Learning about the storm through international news and social media, Filipinos outside the country have also heeded the call to help. (READ: #ReliefPH: Victims of Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) need your help)

Finding comfort in the community

After watching devastating images of the Visayas broadcast on television and online, Lynza Gonzalez from Houston Texas worried about her sisters and brothers whom she has not heard from since Yolanda swept through the region.

"I'm hoping that they are still alive. I have been calling but nobody answers," Gonzalez told KTRK-TV, Houston's local ABC News affiliate.

Gonzalez is desperate to travel back to the Philippines to find out the fate of her family, but in the meantime all she can do is seek comfort with the Houston Filipino community in organizing relief efforts.

Just a few weeks earlier, the community came together for a fundraiser to benefit victims of the 7.2-magnitude earthquake that hit in October the same region ravaged by the strong winds and storm surges brought by Haiyan. With earthquake victims still trying to get back on their feet, another fundraiser is underway to benefit those affected by the storm.

In San Diego, home to around 150,000 Filipinos, the US chapter of Gawad Kalinga already mobilized relief efforts. Gawad Kalinga is distributing food packs in coordination with the Philippine military to get the aid to victims the quickest way possible.

"There is no clean water anywhere. Water is going to be the key," Tony Olaes, CEO of Gawad Kalinga USA, told NBC San Diego.

Pinoys in Pamplona

Pinoys in Pamplona, Spain, said they felt helpless at first – and then they decided to do something. "When you're far away and you see everything that's happening in the Philippines flooding your Twitter and Facebook newsfeeds, the first thing you feel is helplessness. But then come the posts about relief efforts, and then you ask yourself, 'what can I do from here?'" said Alex Gemperle, a student from the University of Navarra.

Alex and friend Selina Artadi are organizing a benifit party for Haiyan victims at a local bar, Valentinos, this Saturday, November 16. An entrance fee of 5 euros will be charged at the door and all proceeds will be forwarded to the Red Cross' relief efforts in the Philippines.

They planned a party fundraiser at a house, but were surprised when they learned more people than anticipated were attending. Valentinos offered to host the fundraiser for free and help spread the word. Over 500 people have already been invited to attend the event.

According to Gemperle, "The support of the community has been realy touching."

Here is a running list of overseas relief efforts of Filipino organizations and efforts around the world.

USA
Alpha Phi Omega National Service Fraternity, Alpha Kappa Omega, PASA and Soulciety are hosting a typhoon relief drive at California State University East Bay, for the victims. They are collecting monetary donations, non-perishable food items, toiletries and first aid kits. Contact Mason Ignacio mason@pasacsueb.org, Romer Penalosa romer.empath.100@gmail.com, Dalena Tran Dtran233@horizon.csueastbay.edu, or Ryan Medina r.medina724@yahoo.com for inquiries.
The Ugly Kitchen at 103 First Ave. New York, New York is holding a fundraiser on Tuesday November 12 from 5 pm-11 pm. All proceeds will go to the Red Cross Philippines.

Singing in the Rain: Benefit Concert for Philippine Typhoon Victims, organized by the Harvard Philippine Forum at Quincy Dining Hall, is holding a concert on November 15 at 58 Plympton Street, Cambridge. Suggested donation at the door is $5. For those who can't go but would still like to help, you can through their Indiegogo page.

Canada
Celebrity Tributes for Philippine Typhoon Haiyan Victims http://www.luisamarshall.com/celebrity-tributes-philippine-typhoon-haiyan-victims/ Thursday, November 14 at Grand Taj Banquet Hall, Unit 6, 8388 128 St. Surry, BC, V3W 4G2. Tickets are $30.

Singapore
Michael Genove and other overseas Filipino workers in Singapore are holding a relief drive for victims of Typhoon Yolanda. They have donation boxes prepared at 52 Choa Chu Kang North 7 Regent Grove Tower B1, nearest MRT is Yew Tee. Michael may be contacted at +65 81281590.

Spain
Party for a Cause is charging a 5-euro entrance fee per person on November 16, 7 pm onwards at Valentino, Avenida de Bayona 32 Bajo Trasera 31008 Pamplona, Spain. All proceeds will be forwarded to the Philippine Red Cross.

Online
World Food Programme Philippines is accepting donations through their website
For the Ayala Foundation's "Laging Handa Fund," overseas donors can use this online portal for donations.
ShelterBox is an international disaster relief charity that provides emergency shelter and life-saving supplies to families around the world who are affected by disasters. Donations are welcome through its website. Know more about their efforts in the Philippines for victims of Typhoon Yolanda here.
Save the Children is collecting donations through its website. Save the Children has a team on the ground in Tacloban working to respond to this emergency. They are focusing on blankets and mosquito nets for the affected families.
UNICEF is accepting online cash donations through its website.
ANCOP USA Foundation for international donations through this website.
United States residents can make tax-deductable donations through the US Philippines Society.
The Olahay Family from Sweden started an online fundraiser to help recover the homes of the children of San Roque, Tanauan, Leyte. You may support their campaign here.
The Co-operative Development Foundation of Canada is appealing to members of credit unions and cooperatives across Canada for financial support to aid victims of Haiyan. Donations can be made online or by mail to the Cooperative Development Foundation of Canada, 275 Bank Street, Suite 400, Ottawa, Ontario, K2P 2L6. Please indicate that your donation is designated for the Philippines Flood Relief Fund. Tax receipts will be issued for donations over $10.
The National Alliance for Filipino Concerns, an alliance of Filipino organizations and individuals in the United States, is collecting monetary donations for the relief and rehabilitation of typhoon victims. More information can be found in their website.
Give2Asia, a US-based social enterprise that serves as a catalyst for philanthropic investment in Asia, is collecting funds online for the Typhoon Yolanda victims. More details can be found on their website.
Thresher Shark Divers is accepting donations to help the victims of the recent typhoon on Malapascua Island through a fundraising website.
Groupon Philippines is accepting donations through its website.
Streetlight Foundation, a non-profit organization based in Tacloban, Philippines, was directly in the path of the typhoon. You can help by donating by Pay Pal to:help@streetlight.org. Or via bank: 4202 31 56606. IBAN: NO42 4202 31 56606 SWIFT: SPTRNO22

Are there relief efforts going on where you live? Let us know. Email move.ph@rappler.com or comment below. – With reports from Ryan Macasero/Rappler.com


Help the victims of Typhoon Yolanda (international codename: Haiyan). Visit Rappler's list of ongoing relief operations in your area. Tell us about your relief and recovery initiatives, email move.ph@rappler.com or tweet us @moveph.

Visit rappler.com/typhoon-yolanda for the latest updates on Typhoon Yolanda.

More from our typhoon Yolanda coverage:
#ReliefPH: Victims of Typhoon Yolanda need your help
#YolandaPH: Looking for friends, relatives in affected areas?
Help map cell signals in areas affected by Yolanda
TIMELINE: Super Typhoon Yolanda
Worried Pinoys use social media to find loved ones

Source

.

Typhoon, Quake Hit Battered Japan, 1 Million Evacuated

By Akiko Fujita
@akikofujita


Sep 21, 2011 9:59am




A powerful typhoon made landfall in the main island of Japan today, killing at least six people, and forcing the evacuation of more than a million others. And just hours later the country was hit with an earthquake.

The 5.3 magnitude quake struck just south of Fukushima, where the March earthquake and tsunami crippled a complex of nuclear plants.

Typhoon Roke, the second major storm to hit the country this month, dumped more than 15 inches of rain in parts of central Japan within 24 hours, bringing with it winds of up to 130 miles an hour, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

Heavy rains triggered flooding throughout central and eastern Japan, raising the threat of landslides in a region still reeling from another powerful storm. Television footage showed drivers stranded along flooded streets. Office workers had to be rescued from buildings by boat because the rivers were too high.

In Nagoya, home to Toyota Motor Corp, the city temporarily called off an evacuation warning for 880,000 people once the rivers crested. That didn’t stop Japan’s top automakers from shutting plants as a precaution.

In Tokyo, the typhoon forced the cancellation of more than a hundred domestic flights, and halted train service at the height of rush hour. At Shibuya station, one of the city’s busiest, thousands of stranded commuters waited patiently for hours, for service to re-start. Other modes of transportation didn’t fare any better, as lines wrapped around the block for buses and taxis.

Along the ravaged northeast coast, survivors of the March 11 tsunami braced for yet another disaster. The threat of strong winds and rain forced the Tokyo Electric Power Company to halt work at the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. The utility suspended efforts to cover one of the reactor buildings, but said there was no risk of radioactive water overflowing, as a result of all the rain. Further north in Miyagi and Iwate prefecture, local media reported minor flooding at temporary homes.

Japan has been hit by one natural disaster after another, since a powerful earthquake and tsunami killed more than 20,000 people. Typhoon Roke comes just weeks after Typhoon Talas killed 67 people, and left dozens of others injured in central Japan.


Source

Super Typhoon Lashes Philippines, Knocks Out Power

Updated: 13 minutes ago
Bullit Marquez


AP CAUAYAN, Philippines (Oct. 18) -- The strongest cyclone in years to buffet the Philippines knocked out communications and power as residents took shelter Monday, while flooding in Vietnam swept away a bus and 20 of its passengers, including a girl pulled from her mother's grasp by the raging waters.

Super Typhoon Megi, crossing the northern Philippines, was expected to add to the already heavy rains that have fallen on much of Asia. In China, authorities evacuated 140,000 people from a coastal province ahead of the typhoon.

Megi could later hit Vietnam, where flooding has caused 30 deaths in recent days, in addition to those missing and feared dead after a bus was snatched off a road by surging currents Monday.

Megi packed sustained winds of 140 miles (225 kilometers) per hour and gusts of 162 mph (260 kph) as it made landfall midday Monday at Palanan Bay in Isabela province, felling trees and utility poles and cutting off power, phone and Internet services in many areas. It appeared to be weakening while crossing the mountains of the Philippines' main northern island of Luzon.

With more than 3,600 Filipinos riding out the typhoon in sturdy school buildings, town halls, churches and relatives' homes, roads in and out of coastal Isabela province, about 320 kilometers (200 miles) northeast of Manila, were deserted and blocked by collapsed trees and power lines.

One man who had just rescued his water buffalo slipped and fell into a river and probably drowned, said Bonifacio Cuarteros, an official with the Cagayan provincial disaster agency.

As it crashed ashore, the typhoon whipped up huge waves. There was zero visibility and radio reports said the wind was so powerful that people could not take more than a step at a time. Ships and fishing vessels were told to stay in ports, and several domestic and international flights were canceled.

Thousands of military reserve officers and volunteers were on standby, along with helicopters, including six Chinooks that were committed by U.S. troops holding war exercises with Filipino soldiers near Manila, said Benito Ramos, a top disaster-response official.

"This is like preparing for war," Ramos, a retired army general, told The Associated Press. "We know the past lessons, and we're aiming for zero casualties."

In July, an angry President Benigno Aquino III fired the head of the weather bureau for failing to predict that a typhoon would hit Manila. That storm killed more than 100 people in Manila and outlying provinces.

This time, authorities sounded the alarm early and ordered evacuations and the positioning of emergency relief and food supplies days before the typhoon hit. The capital was expected to avoid any direct hit, though schools were closed.

Megi was the most powerful typhoon to hit the Philippines in four years, government forecasters say. A 2006 howler with 155-mph (250-kph) winds set off mudslides that buried entire villages, killing about 1,000 people.

In central Vietnam, officials said 20 people on a bus were swept away Monday by strong currents from a river flooded by recent rains unrelated to Megi, while another 17 survived by swimming or clinging to trees or power poles.

One survivor treaded water for 3½ hours as the current pushed her downstream and she was forced to let go of her daughter due to exhaustion. The girl is among the missing.

Officials said 30 other people died in central Vietnam from flooding over the weekend, and five remain missing.

Megi could add to the misery.

"People are exhausted," Vietnamese disaster official Nguyen Ngoc Giai said by telephone from Quang Binh province. "Many people have not even returned to their flooded homes from previous flooding, while many others who returned home several days ago were forced to be evacuated again."

China's National Meteorological Center said Megi was expected to enter the South China Sea on Tuesday, threatening southeasterern coastal provinces. The center issued its second-highest alert for potential "wild winds and huge waves," warning vessels to take shelter and urging authorities to brace for emergencies.

Floods triggered by heavy rains forced nearly 140,000 people to evacuate from homes in the southern island province of Hainan, where heavy rains left thousands homeless over the weekend, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Monday.

Thailand also reported flooding that submerged thousands of homes and vehilce and halting train service. No casualties were reported, but nearly 100 elephants were evacuated from a popular tourist attraction north of the capital.

Associated Press writers Jim Gomez, Teresa Cerojano and Hrvoje Hranjski in Manila; Margie Mason and Tran Van Minh in Hanoi, Vietnam; and Chi-Chi Zhang in Beijing contributed to this report.
.
Source
.

Second Major Storm Slams Philippines

(Photo)http://wwwimage.cbsnews.com/images/2009/10/03/image5360693g.jpg

Second Major Storm Slams Philippines


By ROHAN SULLIVAN,
AP
posted: 41 MINUTES AGO


MANILA, Philippines (Oct. 3) - Typhoon Parma slammed into the Philippines on Saturday, ripping off roofs, toppling power pylons and swelling rivers in the country's mountainous north. At least two people were killed, an official said.

The storm — the country's second in eight days — cut a path across the northeastern tip of the main island of Luzon and was headed in the direction of Taiwan, where evacuations of southern villages were under way.

The capital, Manila, escaped the worst of the storm. The city was still reeling from one on Sept. 26 that caused the worst flooding in four decades, killing at least 288 people and damaging the homes of 3 million more.

The provinces of Cagayan and Isabela were hardest hit Saturday by powerful winds and drenching rain, cutting some communications and roads to some towns.

"The damage is quite heavy," Cagayan police Chief Roberto Damian told ABC-CBN television. "We are clearing highways and roads to reach people calling for rescue."

In Isabela, one man drowned and another died from exposure to the cold and wet weather, said Lt. Col. Loreto Magundayao of an army division based in the province.

Tens of thousands of people were moved to safe ground across the Philippines ahead of the typhoon, though officials said the threat of another national disaster eased as Parma changed course overnight Friday and bypassed the capital, parts of which are still chest-deep in floodwaters.

Trees were uprooted and power poles toppled in the provincial capital of Tuguegarao, Cagayan local government official Bonifacio Cuarteros told The Associated Press by telephone. Buildings had their roofs torn off. Similar damage was reported in neighboring Isabela.

Parma hit the coast packing sustained winds of 108 mph (175 kph), though they weakened as the storm passed overland, the national weather bureau said.

Weather bureau chief Prisco Nilo warned that the heavy rain could trigger landslides and flooding, and strong winds could create tidal surges "similar to a tsunami" along the eastern coast.
After the storm changed course, officials began moving back tens of thousands of people who had been evacuated from coastal areas that might have been in the path of the storm.

Taiwan issued a storm warning and began moving people out of villages in the southern county of Kaohsiung, local official Lin Chun-chieh said. Flash floods from the last typhoon to hit the Kaohsiung area killed about 700 people in August.

The earlier storm to hit the Philippines, Ketsana, went on to hit other Southeast Asian countries, killing 99 in Vietnam, 14 in Cambodia and 16 in Laos.

It was part of more than a week of destruction in the Asia-Pacific region that has claimed more than 1,500 lives so far: an earthquake Wednesday in Indonesia; a tsunami Tuesday in the Samoan islands; and Typhoon Ketsana across Southeast Asia.

Another typhoon, Melor, was churning in the Philippine Sea, 1,600 miles (2,575 kilometers) to the east, threatening the U.S. territory of the Northern Mariana Islands.

Most businesses there were shut Saturday morning, and residents of the island of Saipan who don't live in concrete homes moved to typhoon shelters, said Charles Reyes, Northern Marianas Gov. Benigno Fitial's press secretary.

Associated Press writers Oliver Teves in Manila and Debby Wu in Taipei, Taiwan, contributed to this report.


Source: http://news.aol.com/article/typhoon-parma-slams-philippines/618721

.

Philippines Begins Evacuations as Typhoon Parma Heads for Luzon

By Aaron Sheldrick and Francisco Alcuaz Jr.

Oct. 2 (Bloomberg) -- The Philippines started evacuations as Typhoon Parma headed for Luzon, where recovery efforts continue after Tropical Storm Ketsana devastated Manila and other parts of the island six days ago, leaving 280 people dead.

Authorities began moving people from provinces north and southeast of Manila into shelters, Philippine Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said in an interview on ABS-CBN television.
Parma’s center was 564 kilometers (290 miles) east of the city of Daet in southeastern Luzon at 2 a.m. Manila time today, according to the U.S. Navy Joint Typhoon Warning Center. The typhoon is forecast to make landfall after 8 a.m. tomorrow.

The typhoon is forecast to bring more rain to areas already devastated by Ketsana, which earlier this week left more than 100 people dead in Vietnam and Cambodia. In Indonesia, rescue workers are searching for survivors in Padang in Sumatra, where an earthquake two days ago left 230 people dead. In the South Pacific, a recovery operation is underway after a tsunami killed more than 150.

“It is almost unprecedented for any region to experience so many disasters over such a short period of time,” United Nations Under-Secretary-General Noeleen Heyzer said in a statement. “The disasters of the past week remind us that Asia Pacific is the worlds’ disaster hot spot.”

Parma’s winds decreased to 222 kilometers per hour from 241 yesterday. The typhoon remains a Category 4 storm, the second- strongest on the Saffir-Simpson scale, and is forecast to regain strength before making landfall, according to the center.

Preparing for Landfall
The Philippines Navy assembled a task force in northern Luzon to prepare for Parma’s landfall, spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Edgard Arevalo said in a phone interview yesterday. The Air Force will send trucks and rubber boats to facilitate evacuations, Air Force spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Gerardo Zamudio said.

The Philippines weather agency, which refers to Parma as Pepeng, raised its No. 2 storm signal for areas of southeastern Luzon today, meaning winds of between 60 and 100 kph are expected.

A gale warning was issued for islands to the southeast of Luzon.

Ketsana blew across Luzon on Sept. 26 dumping a month’s worth of rain in six hours and flooding most of Manila and surrounding areas.

More than 3 million people were affected by Ketsana and 676,235 are in evacuation centers, the Philippines disaster council said in its latest report. Forty-two people are missing.

The Philippine government has declared a “state of calamity” for the Manila metropolitan region and other parts of Luzon island as well as Mindoro island to the south.

Ketsana smashed into central Vietnam on Sept. 29 as a typhoon with winds of 167 kph, killing at least 92 people in the country. Nineteen people were missing.

The storm left at least 14 people dead in Cambodia after crossing Vietnam, Agence France-Presse reported yesterday.

Ketsana is the name of a tree in Laos, according to the Hong Kong Observatory, which lists names in use for Pacific storms on its Web site. Parma is the name of a ham and chicken liver dish in Macau.

To contact the reporters on this story: Aaron Sheldrick in Tokyo at asheldrick@bloomberg.net; Francisco Alcuaz Jr. in Manila at falcuaz@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: October 1, 2009 20:17 EDT

Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601080&sid=aoDLah3TAAQ4

.

Philippine death toll rises, as new storms brew

By TERESA CEROJANO, Associated Press Writer
Teresa Cerojano, Associated Press Writer – 1 hr 53 mins ago

MANILA, Philippines – The toll from floods in the northern Philippines rose to at least 284 dead or missing Tuesday as bedraggled victims queued up for aid and Typhoon Ketsana roared into Vietnam.

The storm, which struck Manila and surrounding provinces on Saturday, gathered strength across the South China Sea, and claimed at least 23 lives as it made landfall Tuesday in central Vietnam, where 170,000 were evacuated from its path. It was weakening as it headed west into Laos.

Two new storms were brewing in the Pacific and threatened to complicate relief efforts in the Philippines, officials said.

The homes of nearly 1.9 million people in Manila and surrounding areas were inundated in the weekend flooding, the National Disaster Coordinating Council said. Nearly 380,000 people have sought shelter in schools, churches and other evacuation centers.

The council said 246 were confirmed dead late Tuesday, with 38 missing.

Authorities ordered extra police to be deployed to prevent looting in communities abandoned by fleeing residents, as frustration rose among those who have lost their homes or belongings.

Queues of bedraggled victims grew long at hundreds of aid distribution centers as floodwaters subsided further and more people went in search of food, clean water, dry clothes and shelter.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's administration — sensitive to criticism it did not give sufficient warning of the deluge or was too slow to respond — conceded it was overwhelmed but said it was doing all it could to help.

Officials appealed for international aid, warning they may not have enough resources to withstand two new storms forecasters have spotted east of the island nation in the Pacific Ocean. One could hit the northern Philippines later this week and the other early next week, although meteorologists say that could change.

Ketsana dumped more than a month's worth of rain in just 12 hours, causing the country's worst flooding in 40 years.

Philippine authorities rescued more than 12,000 people, but unconfirmed reports of more deaths abound, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said.

Water that reached shoulder-depth in parts of the capital's streets on Saturday had subsided in many areas by Tuesday. People trudged through ankle-deep sludge to reach shelters where volunteers handed out bottles of water and other items. Elsewhere, people used shovels and brooms to begin mopping-up.

Many people complained the aid was too coming too slowly, and was not enough.

Arroyo said those who suffered had a right to complain but appealed to them to understand that the scale of the disaster was huge.

"We're responding to the extent we can to this once-in-a-lifetime typhoon emergency," she said in a statement issued Tuesday.

Arroyo opened part of the presidential palace as a relief center, where hundreds of people queued Tuesday for packets of noodles and other food donated by companies and individuals. At another center, Arroyo's executive chef cooked gourmet food for victims.

Arroyo and her Cabinet said they would donate two months' salary to the relief effort.

But conditions in many hard-hit areas remained squalid.

In the Bagong Silangan area in the capital, about 150 people sheltered on a covered basketball court that had been turned into a makeshift evacuation center for storm victims. People lay on pieces of cardboard amid piles of garbage and swarming flies, their belongings crammed into bags nearby.

Seventeen white wooden coffins, some of them child-sized, lined one part of the court. A woman wept quietly beside one coffin.

The storm left entire communities covered in mud, cars upended on city streets and power lines cut.

The government declared a "state of calamity" in metropolitan Manila and 25 storm-hit provinces, allowing officials to use emergency funds for relief and rescue. Arroyo would issue an executive order within the week declaring a national holiday as "clean up day," the palace said.

The United States has donated $100,000 and deployed a military helicopter and five rubber boats manned by about 20 American soldiers from the country's south, where they have been providing counterterrorism training. The United Nations Children's Fund and the World Food Program have also provided food and other aid.

___

Associated Press writer Jim Gomez contributed to this report.

Source:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090929/ap_on_re_as/as_philippines_flooding

A Million Flee Typhoon in China

Rescuers aided a man stranded by flooding as Typhoon Morakot approached Shanghai on Sunday.

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: August 9, 2009

Filed at 10:28 p.m. ET


Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
The Hotel Chin Shuai lay collapsed in floodwater during typhoon Morakot in Chihpen, southeastern Taiwan, on Sunday.

BEIJING (AP) -- A powerful typhoon toppled houses, flooded villages and forced nearly 1 million people to flee to safety on China's eastern coast before weakening into a tropical storm Monday.

Named Morakot, the storm struck after triggering the worst flooding in Taiwan in 50 years, leaving dozens missing and bringing down a six-story hotel. It earlier lashed the Philippines, killing at least 22 people.

Morakot, or emerald in Thai, slammed into China's Fujian province Sunday afternoon as a typhoon carrying heavy rain and winds of 74 miles (119 kilometers) per hour, according the China Meteorological Administration. At least one child died after a house collapsed in Zhejiang province.

By early Monday, the storm packed winds of 52 miles per hour (83 kilometers per hour) and churned at about 6 mph (10 kph), it said.

Hundreds of villages and towns were flooded and more than 2,000 houses collapsed, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

People stumbled with flashlights as the storm enveloped the town of Beibi in Fujian in darkness, Xinhua said. Strong winds uprooted trees or snapped them apart, while farmers used buckets to catch fish swept out of fish farms by high waves.

Village officials in Zhejiang rode bicycles to hand out drinking water and instant noodles to residents stranded by deep floods, while rescuers tried to reach eight sailors on a cargo ship blown onto a reef off Fujian, Xinhua reported.

About 1 million people were evacuated from China's eastern coastal provinces.

Morakot hit Taiwan late Friday and crossed the island Saturday causing the worst flooding in half a century.

Authorities used helicopters to drop food Monday at a mountainous village in southern Kaohsiung county, which was hit by a massive landslide. Official Yang Chiu-hsing said rescuers failed to reach the 1,300 villagers because bridges and roads were damaged by floods.

Taiwan's Disaster Relief Center said Morakot killed 12 people and another 52 were missing, including 14 people whose makeshift home was swept away. Two policemen were washed away while helping to evacuate villagers in southeastern Taitung county.

The government set up a task force to coordinate relief work in the worst-hit counties in the south, where many towns and villages remained inundated by floodwaters, officials said.

In Japan, meanwhile, Typhoon Etau slammed into the western coast Monday. Nine people were killed in raging floodwaters and landslides and nine others were missing, police said.

In the northern Philippines, the death toll from Morakot rose to 22 Monday with 18 injured and four missing, including three European tourists who were swept away.

------

Associated Press writers Annie Huang in Taipei, Jim Gomez in Manila, and Shino Yuasa in Tokyo contributed to this report.

.

Source:http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/08/09/world/AP-AS-Asia-Storm.html?_r=1&ref=global-home

.